GREENSBORO, North Carolina -- As he heads into his first season as the North Carolina A&T women's basketball coach, Tarrell Robinson has assembled an impressive staff .
"I have a staff I feel will help me take Lady Aggie Basketball to new heights," Robinson said. "I know each individual is no stranger to hard work and dedication. That's what it's going to take to climb back to the top of the MEAC. There's work to be done, and I think I found the right people to help me do it."
Robinson announced the hiring of
Laphelia Doss,
Franklin Scott and
Shavon Earp as assistant basketball coaches. Former A&T women's basketball player
Reisha Bullock will be his director of basketball operations.
Doss arrives with 10 years of coaching experience, which includes four appearances in the NCAA tournament as a coach and one as a student-athlete with Eastern Kentucky. Prior to coming to A&T, Doss was the head women's basketball coach and senior woman administrator at Brewton-Parker College in Mount Vernon, Ga. In 2011-12, she tripled the team's win total from the previous season, while also making the conference tournament. She also served as an assistant coach at Austin Peay State University for three years, at Southern Polytechnic State for one year and at James Madison for a season. She spent four years as an assistant coach at Eastern Kentucky.
"Laphelia will bring a competitive edge with her experiences of winning championships as a player in college and as a coach," Robinson said. "She will be responsible for development of our post players, a position she dominated as a player. In her 10-plus years of service in this profession, she has developed several all conference performers in that area and that's what our expectations are here with our post."
Scott brings plenty of coaching and player development experience with him to A&T. Scott comes to Greensboro after serving as the top assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Jefferson College in Hillsboro, Mo. The Vikings won more than 50 games over the last two seasons. Last season, the Vikings finished seventh in the National Junior College Athletic Association Division I tournament after winning the Region XVI championship . Scott also served as an assistant coach at Neosho County Community College (Kan.) and Arizona Western College.
Robinson expects Scott to be a huge asset in recruiting. He will also be counted on to assist in player development and game scouting.
"I really think I got a steal in Franklin" Robinson said. "He is a tireless worker who will make everyone have to raise the bar to keep up with him. He has unlimited connections and relationships that he developed from being on the (junior college) circuit."
Earp joins the Aggies after spending two seasons as an assistant coach at William & Mary. With the Tribe, she worked with guards and perimeter players, which resulted in an All-CAA player in Taysha Pye. Earp also worked as an assistant girls varsity basketball coach for Hampton High School and the heralded Boo Williams 16-and-under Elite AAU Team. She also worked as a graduate student for the Radford University women's basketball program. Earp played collegiately at the University of Pittsburgh and Radford.
"Shavon is one of the most promising young recruiters in the country," Robinson said. "She has that rare ability to connect with anyone who crosses her path. She has the background of being affiliated with one of the most respected organizations and people in this business, Boo Williams. In a short period of time she has developed relationships with high school and AAU coaches that will be beneficial to our continued success in recruiting student-athletes who can be stellar in the classroom as well as on the court."
As an A&T assistant, she will be responsible for the development of the Aggie guards. Robinson expects her to raise the level of play on the perimeter, calling her one of the best prep guards to come out of the Tide Water area before playing well collegiately.
Bullock will be a familiar face for Aggie fans, as she competed as a student-athlete in the program for three seasons starting in 2008. After transferring from Copiah Lincoln Community College in Wesson, Miss., she helped the Aggies win the 2009 MEAC Tournament Championship, which subsequently earned the team an NCAA tournament appearance. She ended her A&T career with 302 points, 192 rebounds, 94 assists and 51 steals in 53 games played.
Robinson met Bullock in 2005, as he tried to recruit her to A&T during his first year as an assistant coach under former A&T women's basketball coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs. Since that time, Robinson said he has watched her grow and mature into a responsible young adult.
"I've also watched her desire to get started in this profession grow," he said. "Her basketball pedigree has her destined to be successful in the profession. As our operations person, I expect her to take care of and be the liaison for a lot of the everyday activities of a Division I program."
Robinson's three new assistants and new operations director will be working with Robinson to lead the Aggies on a campaign for the program's third MEAC Championship Tournament title. The Aggies return all five starters, including 1,000-point scorer
JaQuayla Berry, six-time MEAC Rookie of the Week
Tiffanie Adair, A&T Female Athlete of the Year
Amber Calvin and double-figure scorer
Tracy King.
COURTESY NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION
BOWIE, Maryland - Prince George’s Community College’s loss is Bowie State University’s gain. After a standout sophomore season at PGCC, David Golladay plans to continue his basketball career this winter at Bowie State, stepping into a quality opportunity to contribute on a guard-oriented team.
