The Richmond Register is reporting Louisville assistant coach Samantha Williams has accepted the head coach position at Eastern Kentucky University.
“This is a special opportunity, and I’m ready to lead the program back to a level of excellence,” Coach Williams said. “I’m confident that the University and Richmond communities are going to love what they see from our student-athletes on and off the court. I’m excited to get started.”
Coach Williams has spent the last eight seasons assisting the Cardinals. During her tenure, Louisville has gone to two Final Fours and a National Championship.
Since joining the Louisville staff in 2011, the Cardinals have compiled a 234 – 53 record, including six top-10 finishes in the national polls.
Eastern Kentucky University’s Director of Athletics, Stephen Lochmueller, has issued the following statement:
Few coaches have experienced as much success as Samantha has during her career. She has been a key part in some of the most successful women’s basketball teams the sport has seen over the past 17 years. That experience will be instrumental in rebuilding the EKU women’s basketball program. Samantha is a winner. She refuses to settle for anything short of excellence. Once I spent some time talking with Samantha, it became clear to me she is the right person, at the right time, to lead our program. She will return Colonel basketball to the top of the Ohio Valley Conference.
According to a tweet from Louisville head coach, Jeff Walz, the team and the staff are extremely excited for Coach Williams.
Coach Walz also released the following statement:
I am thrilled that Sam is getting this well-deserved opportunity to become the head coach at Eastern Kentucky University. She has worked very hard at Louisville over the past eight years and is a big part of our success. Sam will take her knowledge and experience of being a member of two Final Four teams to EKU. I appreciate Sam’s loyalty to me, our team, and to the University of Louisville. It is now her turn and her time, to run her own program. I have no doubt she will be an immediate impact hire and you can trust that we will be cheering her on.
A huge congratulations to Coach Williams from all of us at Cardinal Sports Zone!! We are truly thankful for your time at Louisville and we can’t wait to see you dominate at EKU!!
EKU will introduce Coach Williams on Wednesday, April 3rd. A reception will be held for fans and media at the EKU Center for the Arts. The event will begin at 3:30PM.
We welcome @ULCoachSam to the #EKU Colonel Family! Exciting times ahead for @EKUWBB @EKUSports @eku https://t.co/fdH7yxKJwk
— Michael T. Benson (@michaeltbenson) March 27, 2019
