Shipman, Guensch, Carter join women's basketball staff
GREENSBORO, N.C. – UNCG has added three
new assistant coaches to its women's basketball staff, head coach
Wendy Palmer announced Tuesday. Latasha Shipman, Darren Guensch and
LaToya Carter will all join the Spartan staff.
"Latasha Shipman has a wealth of experience and is a proven
winner," Palmer said. "She's passionate about the game and works
hard and has been a part of building a program and having success.
I'm excited to have her return to her home state of North Carolina
and to help build a successful program here at UNCG. Her energy,
enthusiasm and passion for the game are unparalleled."
Shipman comes to UNCG after a four-year stint at Florida A&M
in Tallahassee, Fla., where she was primarily responsible for post
player development, academic advisement, community relations and
scouting under MEAC Coach of the Year LeDawn Gibson. The Lady
Rattlers were 69-51 with a 39-25 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
record during Shipman's tenure.
FAMU's best season with Shipman on the sideline was its most
recent. The Lady Rattlers went 22-8 on the season, finishing second
in the MEAC with a 14-2 league record and falling in the semifinals
of the MEAC Championship. The squad turned in a league-best 14-game
winning streak during the season and finished with 20-plus wins for
the first time since the 1996-97 season.
FAMU senior Antonia Bennett was named the 2012 MEAC Player of the
Year, while classmate Qiana Donald garnered Defensive Player of the
Year honors.
During Shipman's tenure, FAMU beat South Florida and Florida on
the road and Alabama at home, all during the 2009-10 campaign, in
which the Lady Rattlers went 18-11 overall.
Prior to her time at Florida A&M, Shipman spent four years at
her alma mater, Shaw University in Raleigh, N.C., helping the Lady
Bears to three Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association
championships and a pair of NCAA Division II Elite Eight
appearances.
As a player for Shaw, Shipman scored more than 1,000 career points
and pulled down more than 700 career rebounds prior to graduating
in 2004. She helped the Lady Bears to a pair of CIAA championships
as the team went 59-6 over her final two seasons.
She played professionally in Chile for one year.
"I am excited to be a part of the Spartan family here at the
University of North Carolina Greensboro and honored for the
opportunity to work with coach Wendy Palmer," Shipman said. "UNCG
is on the path of becoming something special, and I'm just happy
for the opportunity to watch it unfold."
Guensch comes to UNCG after two years as an assistant coach at VCU
and another two as the Rams' director of basketball operations. The
Rams were 86-47 with Guensch on staff, making four straight
postseason appearances.
"Darren has a paid his dues in a variety of different roles in
this profession," Palmer said. "His work ethic and determination
have prepared him for this next step in his career, to be a part of
building a program here at UNCG, in a state that he has ties to.
He's excited to hit the ground running."
As an assistant coach the last two years, Guensch helped the
Rams to a pair of postseason WNIT appearances. The Rams were 19-15
in 2011-12, advancing to the WNIT Round of 16. VCU went 19-12 and
also made a WNIT appearance in Guensch's first season as a
coach.
Guensch was responsible for perimeter player development at VCU
and coached two Colonial Athletic Association All-Rookie Team
guards and an All-CAA guard in Andrea Barbour. He also helped bring
in No. 20 recruiting class among mid-majors, according to ESPN
HoopGurlz.
With Guensch serving as its director of basketball operations from
2008-10, VCU went a combined 48-20. The Rams advanced to the WNIT
Round of 16 in 2009-10 and earned an NCAA tournament at-large bid
the year prior.
Prior to joining the VCU staff, Guensch served as George Mason's
director of basketball operations for two years. He got his start
in coaching at Loudoun County High School in Leesburg, Va., serving
as head coach of the freshman team and an assistant varsity coach
for the 2005-06 season. He directed the freshman squad to a
program-best 16-2 record and its first-ever district championship.
He also helped direct Loudoun County's varsity team to a
program-best 29-2 record, district and regional championships and
an appearance in the state semifinals.
Guensch graduated from Radford in 2005.
"UNCG is such a special place because of the people, campus and
community, and it is a privilege to join the Spartan family,"
Guensch said. "Success has followed coach Palmer everywhere she's
been and I am excited to contribute as we build into the lives of
our student-athletes in the classroom and on the court."
Carter joins the UNCG staff after two years as an assistant coach
at her alma mater, Gardner-Webb University in Boiling Springs,
N.C.
"LaToya is young, energetic and works hard," Palmer said. "She has
a passion for this game, overcame adversity throughout her playing
career at Gardner-Webb and pushed forward knowing she wanted to be
a coach. She has worked her way up from being a high school coach
to coaching in college. She's really been active out on the
recruiting scene, and I'm excited to have her here. Having played
in the state, she knows the lay of the land here in North Carolina.
She's going to be great for us."
In Carter's two years on the staff, the Runnin' Bulldogs went
27-36, highlighted by a 23-11 showing in 2010-11. GWU won its
first-ever Big South Conference tournament title that year,
advancing to the NCAA tournament for the first time in school
history.
Before returning to Boiling Springs, Carter was an assistant coach
for two years at Providence Day School in Charlotte, N.C. There,
she helped the Chargers to a 48-10-1 record, a state championship
in 2010 and a state runner-up finish in 2009.
As a player at Gardner-Webb, Carter was a four-year Atlantic Sun
Conference All-Academic selection and helped the Bulldogs to their
first-ever A-Sun tournament finals appearance in 2006. She was
named the team's best defensive player in 2007-08.
As a freshman in 2003, Carter played under head coach Serena King
and assistant coach Melinda Goodson, both former UNCG players.
"I am excited about being a part of UNCG," Carter said. "I am
grateful for the opportunity to coach alongside head coach Wendy
Palmer and carry out her vision of excellence and winning. Coach
Palmer is a competitor and a winner. She knows what it takes and
how to get there. I am assured the best is yet to come and I am
ready to bring the excitement, energy and winning tradition of
women's basketball back to where it belongs."
- UNCG -