LaVonda Wagner, formerly of Duke University, was named the fourth women’s basketball coach in Oregon State University history when she was hired on April 15, 2005.
Wagner made an immediate impact in Oregon State basketball after guiding the Beavers to a 16-15 overall record and a postseason Women’s National Invitation Tournament berth in 2005-06 during her inaugural season as a head coach.
The Beavers posted a 10-game improvement overall – one of just eight programs in the nation to show at least a 10-game improvement from the previous season – and finished with a 7-11 Pacific-10 Conference record after garnering just one conference victory the previous year.
Wagner was named Oregon State’s Women’s Sport Coach of the Year by the Corvallis Gazette-Times newspaper and The Oregonian newspaper listed her as one of its Top 25 most influential people in sports for the state.
Prior to her arrival at Oregon State, Wagner accumulated 17 years of experience on the basketball sidelines as an assistant coach, working at three NCAA Division I institutions (Duke University, University of Illinois, East Tennessee State).
She posted 300 wins as an assistant and was involved in nine consecutive postseason appearances. Accustomed to success, Wagner has coached in the NCAA Final Four, two NCAA Elite Eight games, and two NCAA Sweet 16 appearances.
A native of Bristol, VA, Wagner spent three seasons (2002-05) as an assistant coach at Duke University, where she was heavily involved in recruiting, scouting, and working with the Blue Devils’ post players.
In her time at Duke, Wagner helped the Blue Devils bring in three top five national recruiting classes, including the top recruiting class in 2003 and the second-best recruiting class in 2005. Duke advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight in each of Wagner’s three seasons and earned a trip to the 2003 NCAA Final Four.
Prior to joining Duke’s staff, Wagner spent eight seasons at University of Illinois (1994-02), where she played a large role in the rise of Illini basketball. She was instrumental in garnering one of the top five recruiting classes in 2000, while she attracted many of the top players from Illinois and recruited on a national scale.
While working at Illinois and Duke, Wagner was mentored by two of the most respected and successful coaches in the basketball ranks – Theresa Grentz (Illinois) and Gail Goestenkors (Duke).
Grentz, the head coach at Illinois, has more than 600 wins in her career and is a member of the Women’s Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame, while Goestenkors, the head coach at Duke, has amassed over 350 career victories.
Wagner began her stint at Illinois in 1994 as an assistant coach and four years later she was promoted to recruiting coordinator. After the completion of the 1998-99 season, Wagner was promoted once again to associate head coach where she spent four seasons (1998-02).
Prior to arriving at Illinois, Wagner spent six seasons at East Tennessee State (1988-94) where she served as the top assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. Before joining the basketball ranks, Wagner coached volleyball at ETSU from 1986-88.
A successful student-athlete as well, Wagner earned National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) All-America honors in basketball and volleyball in 1986 at Mars Hill College in North Carolina. On Oct. 23, 1998, Wagner was inducted into the Mars Hill Hall of Fame.
Wagner earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education with a minor in recreation from Mars Hill in 1986 and a master’s degree in education with an emphasis in athletic administration from East Tennessee State in 1988.
An acclaimed public speaker, Wagner has spent time talking at Rotary, Kiwanis, high school clinics, elementary schools, DARE programs and other civic organizations. She believes involvement in the community is an important part of the growth of Oregon State basketball and instills that same desire of “giving back” to her student-athletes.
Wagner served as honorary speaker at the 2006 Oregon State African-American Graduation and branched outside of the coaching ranks by working as a television analyst on FSN during the 2006 WNBA season and playoffs.
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