Apr. 14—After nearly a decade and a half enjoying tremendous success under head coach Ryan McCarthy, the University of Alaska Anchorage women’s basketball team will be looking for a new leader.
The homegrown veteran coach recently accepted the head coaching position at Division I Fresno State University after building up the Seawolves into one of the top Division II programs in the country.
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“It has been one of the greatest honors of my life to be the women’s basketball coach at UAA,” McCarthy said in a statement. “The ladies who built this have left a championship legacy and the most rewarding legacies are the graduates, professionals, spouses and mothers who have come through. Over the past 13 seasons we have had some exceptional ladies in our program who have impacted our university and the state of Alaska.”
Growing up in Alaska and attending UAA games, he dreamt of being able to be part of the program and was “ultimately able to fulfill” that dream at the university he supported.
“I am so thankful for: all the administrators who I got to work for, assistant coaches who helped build our vision, support staff who worked alongside our mission, boosters who helped advance our program and every lady who wore a Seawolf uniform,” McCarthy said. “To everyone who has touched this program and believed in our vision, from the bottom of my heart, thank you.”
He said he’s confident the program will continue to thrive at an elite level. The Seawolves will have to do so without him and his top assistants, Shaina Afoa and Jalon McCullough, who are also joining him on the Bulldogs staff.
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“While it is sad to say goodbye, it is rewarding to know that we are leaving this program in a good position,” McCarthy said.
Over the past 13 years, McCarthy compiled a 309-67 record with a winning percentage of .821, a Great Northwest Athletic Conference-record seven conference titles and nine NCAA Division II Tournament berths. The Seawolves finished as NCAA Division II national runner-ups in 2016, the highest finish in program history.
McCarthy molded eight All-Americans, 10 All-Region and 38 All-GNAC selections, and was named GNAC Coach of the Year six times and West Region Coach of the Year five times. The Seawolves defeated nine Division I opponents and claimed a pair of Great Alaska Shootout titles.
“We wish to extend our deepest appreciation to Ryan McCarthy. For the past 13 years, coach McCarthy has led the women’s basketball program and has made special contributions to the program’s success,” athletic director Ryan Swartwood said in a statement. “We wish coach McCarthy the best in his next chapter.”
UAA said it will begin a national search for its next head women’s basketball coach immediately.
