The first national search since 1978 to find a new women’s basketball coach at the University of Montana is nearing its completion. Skyline Sports confirmed that four finalists are on the UM campus this week doing in-person interviews for the opening to lead the Lady Griz.
Less than a week after one of the biggest upsets in the history of the Big Sky Conference women’s basketball tournament, Montana athletic director Kent Haslam officially opened the national search.
The last time Montana conducted a national search, former Griz men’s basketball standout Robin Selvig earned the position over Tara VanDerveer, who recently led Stanford to its third NCAA national championship in her 35th season at the helm for the Cardinal.
During his 38 seasons guiding UM, Selvig was peerless as well, advancing to the NCAA Tournament 21 times and winning a total of 865 games.
“Our intention since last spring has been to conduct a national search for the next Lady Griz head coach when the current season concluded,” Haslam said in a UM press release.
“I appreciate the search committee helping vet candidates and find the very best leader of this storied program.”
| Lady Griz | Search Committee |
| Mike Frellick | Community and Hoop Club member |
| Jean Gee | Senior associate AD, senior women’s administrator |
| Dan Ingram | Associate AD for development |
| Melanie Meuchel | head softball coach |
| Charlie Palmer | UM professor and faculty athletic rep |
| Krista Redpath | former Lady Griz/ ESPN women’s basketball analyst |
| Sheila Stearns | Former UM president & commissioner of higher education |
| Jen Zelmer Cuaresma | athletic academic advisor |
Skyline Sports has confirmed the following four candidates as the finalists for Montana’s head coaching opening. Sources for confirmation come from sources in direct contact with the candidates.
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