Wells Not Retained as TSU Lady Tigers Head Coach

NASHVILLE, Tennessee  -  Tennessee State University Athletic Director Teresa Phillips announced on Tuesday that Lady Tigers women's basketball coach Tracee Wells would not be retained for the 2012-13 season.

Wells spent eight seasons at the helm of Tennessee State's women's basketball program finishing with a 77-157 overall record and a 55-103 mark in Ohio Valley Conference play.

The Lady Tigers finished the 2011-12 season 9-20 overall and 5-11 in conference action. TSU fell 70-55 to Eastern Kentucky in the first round of the OVC Tournament last Wednesday.

"We are grateful for Tracee's dedication and truly appreciate what she has done for our student-athletes and the University," said Phillips. "However, we feel it's time to go in a new direction for the women's basketball program."

The Tennessee State University alum made notable strides in her seven seasons, including leading the Lady Tigers to an 18-13 record in 2008-09 --- the school's first winning season since 1994-95.

At the conclusion of the 2007-08 campaign, Wells was named the OVC Coach of the Year after turning the Lady Tigers from a 4-16 mark in conference play to 10-10.

Prior to being named head coach in 2005, Wells spent the 2004-05 season as the interim head coach for TSU. During her interim year, Wells took over a program that was 1-25 overall and winless in conference play during the previous season. As the interim head coach Wells led TSU to an overall record of 11-17 and a league mark of 8-8.

Before returning to TSU, Wells coached at Wright State as the recruiting coordinator and spent time as a graduate assistant at Chicago State.

Tennessee State University will begin a coaching search for a replacement women's basketball head coach immediately.

COURTESY: TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION