Darling named NAU women’s head coach, hopes to re-invigorate Lumberjack offense

in Sports Top Sports Stories by Travis Guy — July 9, 2012 at 4:01 pm | no comments

By: Travis Guy

After two months of searching, the NAU women’s basketball team has found a new head coach in former Arizona Wildcats assistant Sue Darling.

Darling coached at UA for four seasons. She succeeds former Lumberjacks head coach Laurie Kelly, who resigned after nine seasons on April 20.

“What excites me the most about this opportunity is the chance to get to know and work with the special group of young women,” Darling said via NAU Athletics. “They are hungry, they are motivated and they want to be coached. I want to be their coach and am honored to have the opportunity.”

The former Wildcat assistant has been coaching basketball for 27 years and has worked with teams like the Wildcats, the ASU Sun Devils and spent three years as the head coach of the Air Force Falcons.

“She [Darling] brings a wealth of experience and enthusiasm that will invigorate the women’s basketball program and engage our students, alumni and the community,” NAU President John Haeger said.

Darling served as the offensive coordinator for Arizona, and helped the offense produce the third-best scoring offense in the Pac-12. The Wildcats averaged 73.7 points-per-game during their 2011-2012 campaign

This will benefit the Lumberjacks, who scored over 70 points in only 13 of their 29 games last season. Senior Amy Patton led the team by averaging 14.6 points per game. Junior Amanda Frost, who transferred from Fullerton College in the fall of last year, sunk 45 3-pointers during the 2011-12 season, giving her a 36 percent 3-point field goal percentage.

“Sue Darling is a high-energy, dedicated coach who wants to develop a program that will represent NAU and Flagstaff,” said Lisa Campos, NAU Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics. “She is a great addition to our coaching staff.”

Despite a strong offense, Darling will need to fill some spots on the roster and coaching staff. Juniors Trinidee Trice and Khyra Conerly left the team after the semester, and former assistant coach and NAU alum Laura Dinkins recently accepted a job at Big Sky champion Idaho State University.

“There is certainly a lot of work to be done,” Darling said, “But at the end of the day, this is a gem of a program for many, many reasons.”