Brenda Frese
Encyclopedia
Brenda Frese is the current women's basketball
team head coach
at the University of Maryland
. Regarded as a high energy, positive coach, the 2011-12 season will be her 10th on the sidelines at Maryland. In 2002, Frese took over a Maryland program in need of rebuilding. In her fourth year as head coach, she guided a talented, young team to win the 2006 Women's National Championship
.
. In her very first game as a head coach, Frese led Ball State to an upset win over Minnesota. Less than two years later, Minnesota hired Frese as their new head coach. During her 2001-02 season at Minnesota, she led a one-year turnaround of 8-20 to 22-8, one of the biggest in NCAA history. Minnesota made it to the 2nd round of the NCAA Championship that year, and Frese was named the AP National Coach of the Year for 2002. Minnesota's fan base quickly grew and the team was able to make a move to start playing its games in the same arena as the men's team. After turning around the MInnesota program, Frese became a sought after coach and drew interest from Maryland, Ohio State and Florida. Maryland Athletic Director Debbie Yow sealed the deal the night of the 2002 Men's NCAA Basketball Championship game, in which Maryland defeated Indiana for the national championship.
Frese was awarded the US Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) Coach of the Year award in 2002.
Despite winning only 10 games in her first season, Frese, the 2002 AP National Coach of the Year, has quickly returned Maryland to national prominence. As of November 2007, Frese has guided Maryland to an overall record of 180-60 (.750) including six consecutive NCAA tournament berths, five consecutive 20-win seasons, four 25+ win seasons, the program's fourth NCAA Final Four appearance and the 2006 NCAA Women's Basketball National Championship
. Maryland received its first-ever No. 1 preseason national ranking in 2006-2007. The Terps remained in the top spot in the polls for 10-consecutive weeks. To begin the 2007-08 season, Maryland was ranked #4 in both major polls and was selected the top preseason pick for the 2007-08 Atlantic Coast Conference Women's Basketball season by a vote of the ACC media. Frese led Maryland to the 2008-09 ACC Regular Season and 2009 ACC Tournament Championships.
Player-wise, as of the spring of 2009, all 20 seniors to play for Frese at Maryland graduated. Frese's high octane Maryland program has also produced four "Top Ten" WNBA Draft Picks- Crystal Langhorne (2008), Laura Harper (2008), Marissa Coleman (2009) and Kristi Toliver (2009). Shay Doron was a 2nd round pick in the 2007 WNBA Draft- a remarkable accomplishment considering her final two college choices were Harvard and an at the time rebuilding Maryland program.
. In the final game, Maryland's Kristi Toliver
tied the game with a jump shot over center Alison Bales
with six seconds left, forcing Duke into overtime, and eventually led Maryland to a win by a score of 78-75. She is the fifth youngest women's coach to win a national championship.
transfer Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood, who was limited by tendinitis in both knees. The team, however, did not deliver a performance as stirring or convincing as in their championship year; they went 0–3 in the regular season against ACC
rivals North Carolina and Duke, were eliminated by the Tar Heels in the ACC Tournament and were upset in the NCAA Tournament's round of 32 by Ole Miss
. Maryland had beaten Ole Miss decisively during the regular season at a tournament in the Bahamas.
Maryland spent much of the 2007–08 season ranked among the nation's top five teams and finished the season 33–4. The Terps advanced to the NCAA's Elite Eight, where they lost an entertaining, high-scoring affair to Stanford, 98–87. During the season, Coach Frese gave birth to twin boys- Markus William Thomas and Tyler Joseph Thomas- on February 17, 2008. That same day, Maryland won on the road at Duke, 76–69, giving Maryland a sweep of the regular season series. Maryland won the preseason WNIT, defeating LSU in the championship game, 75–62. Kristi Toliver
won the Nancy Lieberman Award, which is given annually to the nation's top point guard. Crystal Langhorne
was voted ACC Player of the Year. Both Langhorne and Toliver were named State Farm All-Americans. Langhorne and fellow senior Laura Harper
were top 10 picks in the WNBA Draft.
In 2008-09, after losing five seniors and dropping the season opener at Texas Christian University, Frese was able to coach the team to both the ACC Regular Season and Tournament championships, as well as an NCAA Elite Eight appearance and 31-5 record. Kristi Toliver was named ACC Player of the Year, Marissa Coleman won ACC Tournament MVP and freshman Lynetta Kizer won ACC Rookie of the Year. Coleman and Toliver were selected #2 and #3 overall in the '09 WNBA Draft.
In 2010-11, Maryland bounced back from a year's absence from the NCAA Tournament with a 4th place finish in the ACC regular season. The team had no seniors on its roster. Alyssa Thomas earned seven ACC Rookie of the Week honors and won ACC Rookie of the Year. Four freshmen under Frese have won the ACC's Rookie of the Year award (Langhorne, Coleman, Kizer and Thomas). Lynetta Kizer and Alyssa Thomas earned 2nd team All-ACC honors.
In the 2007 offseason, Coach Frese learned she was pregnant with twins. She gave birth to twin boys, Markus William Thomas and Tyler Joseph Thomas, on February 17, 2008. Her son, Tyler Thomas, the younger of the fraternal twins, was diagnosed with leukemia (ALL) on September 28, 2010.
AP article on Frese, her career, and the championship win
Biographical page at UM's athletics site
Brenda Frese Feature in PressBox after 2006 National Championship
Brenda Frese's Twitter account
Women's basketball
Women's basketball is one of the few women's sports that developed in tandem with its men's counterpart. It became popular, spreading from the east coast of the United States to the west coast , in large part via women's colleges...
team head coach
Head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...
at the University of Maryland
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C...
. Regarded as a high energy, positive coach, the 2011-12 season will be her 10th on the sidelines at Maryland. In 2002, Frese took over a Maryland program in need of rebuilding. In her fourth year as head coach, she guided a talented, young team to win the 2006 Women's National Championship
2006 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament
-Albuquerque:-Bridgeport:-San Antonio:-Cleveland Regional:-Albuquerque Regional:-Bridgeport Regional:-San Antonio Regional:-Final Four – TD Banknorth Garden :...
.
Pre-Maryland Coaching Career
While injured as a player at the University of Arizona, Brenda Frese volunteered as an assistant coach at PIMA Community College in Tucson, Arizona and was hooked. Upon graduation, she immediately started to pursue a career in coaching, driving across the country to attend an NCAA Final Four and working various basketball camps. Frese's career officially started in 1994 as an assistant coach at Kent State and Iowa State and then spent three years as head coach at Ball State and MinnesotaUniversity of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
. In her very first game as a head coach, Frese led Ball State to an upset win over Minnesota. Less than two years later, Minnesota hired Frese as their new head coach. During her 2001-02 season at Minnesota, she led a one-year turnaround of 8-20 to 22-8, one of the biggest in NCAA history. Minnesota made it to the 2nd round of the NCAA Championship that year, and Frese was named the AP National Coach of the Year for 2002. Minnesota's fan base quickly grew and the team was able to make a move to start playing its games in the same arena as the men's team. After turning around the MInnesota program, Frese became a sought after coach and drew interest from Maryland, Ohio State and Florida. Maryland Athletic Director Debbie Yow sealed the deal the night of the 2002 Men's NCAA Basketball Championship game, in which Maryland defeated Indiana for the national championship.
Frese was awarded the US Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) Coach of the Year award in 2002.
College Park Renaissance
When Frese arrived at Maryland prior to the 2002-2003 season, she brought with her the buzz of a rising star in the women's hoops coaching fraternity, as well as a remarkable recruiting acumen. Her first highly coveted recruits, Shay Doron and Kalika France, marked the beginning of an ever-expanding stream of blue chip talent being funneled to College Park.Despite winning only 10 games in her first season, Frese, the 2002 AP National Coach of the Year, has quickly returned Maryland to national prominence. As of November 2007, Frese has guided Maryland to an overall record of 180-60 (.750) including six consecutive NCAA tournament berths, five consecutive 20-win seasons, four 25+ win seasons, the program's fourth NCAA Final Four appearance and the 2006 NCAA Women's Basketball National Championship
2006 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament
-Albuquerque:-Bridgeport:-San Antonio:-Cleveland Regional:-Albuquerque Regional:-Bridgeport Regional:-San Antonio Regional:-Final Four – TD Banknorth Garden :...
. Maryland received its first-ever No. 1 preseason national ranking in 2006-2007. The Terps remained in the top spot in the polls for 10-consecutive weeks. To begin the 2007-08 season, Maryland was ranked #4 in both major polls and was selected the top preseason pick for the 2007-08 Atlantic Coast Conference Women's Basketball season by a vote of the ACC media. Frese led Maryland to the 2008-09 ACC Regular Season and 2009 ACC Tournament Championships.
Player-wise, as of the spring of 2009, all 20 seniors to play for Frese at Maryland graduated. Frese's high octane Maryland program has also produced four "Top Ten" WNBA Draft Picks- Crystal Langhorne (2008), Laura Harper (2008), Marissa Coleman (2009) and Kristi Toliver (2009). Shay Doron was a 2nd round pick in the 2007 WNBA Draft- a remarkable accomplishment considering her final two college choices were Harvard and an at the time rebuilding Maryland program.
The 2006 Championship win
Frese coached Maryland's Terrapins to a 34-4 record during the 2006 season. The team finished the season by winning the 2006 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament2006 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament
-Albuquerque:-Bridgeport:-San Antonio:-Cleveland Regional:-Albuquerque Regional:-Bridgeport Regional:-San Antonio Regional:-Final Four – TD Banknorth Garden :...
. In the final game, Maryland's Kristi Toliver
Kristi Toliver
Kristi Toliver is a former basketball player for the University of Maryland at College Park. She is from Harrisonburg, Virginia, and has an older sister, Carli. She is the daughter of former NBA referee, George Toliver, and Peggy Toliver.-High school:Attended Harrisonburg High School and...
tied the game with a jump shot over center Alison Bales
Alison Bales
Alison Marie Bales is an American professional basketball player who plays for the WNBA's Atlanta Dream.-High school:...
with six seconds left, forcing Duke into overtime, and eventually led Maryland to a win by a score of 78-75. She is the fifth youngest women's coach to win a national championship.
Book release
In October 2006, Frese and writer Chris King released a book chronicling the Terrapins' rise to their 2006 championship win entitled "Overtime Is Our Time." The 200-page book, published by Terrapin State Publishing, earned acclaim by national TV basketball analyst Debbie Antonelli.Post-Championship
The Terp women were ranked #1 in major preseason polls entering the 2006-2007 season, a first for the program. They were also set to debut star TennesseeUniversity of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee is a public land-grant university headquartered at Knoxville, Tennessee, United States...
transfer Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood, who was limited by tendinitis in both knees. The team, however, did not deliver a performance as stirring or convincing as in their championship year; they went 0–3 in the regular season against ACC
Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...
rivals North Carolina and Duke, were eliminated by the Tar Heels in the ACC Tournament and were upset in the NCAA Tournament's round of 32 by Ole Miss
University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the...
. Maryland had beaten Ole Miss decisively during the regular season at a tournament in the Bahamas.
Maryland spent much of the 2007–08 season ranked among the nation's top five teams and finished the season 33–4. The Terps advanced to the NCAA's Elite Eight, where they lost an entertaining, high-scoring affair to Stanford, 98–87. During the season, Coach Frese gave birth to twin boys- Markus William Thomas and Tyler Joseph Thomas- on February 17, 2008. That same day, Maryland won on the road at Duke, 76–69, giving Maryland a sweep of the regular season series. Maryland won the preseason WNIT, defeating LSU in the championship game, 75–62. Kristi Toliver
Kristi Toliver
Kristi Toliver is a former basketball player for the University of Maryland at College Park. She is from Harrisonburg, Virginia, and has an older sister, Carli. She is the daughter of former NBA referee, George Toliver, and Peggy Toliver.-High school:Attended Harrisonburg High School and...
won the Nancy Lieberman Award, which is given annually to the nation's top point guard. Crystal Langhorne
Crystal Langhorne
- External links :* at University of Maryland website.* at...
was voted ACC Player of the Year. Both Langhorne and Toliver were named State Farm All-Americans. Langhorne and fellow senior Laura Harper
Laura Harper
Laura Julyen Harper is an international cricketer who played for the England women's cricket team. At the time of her debut, she was the youngest player to have played for England....
were top 10 picks in the WNBA Draft.
In 2008-09, after losing five seniors and dropping the season opener at Texas Christian University, Frese was able to coach the team to both the ACC Regular Season and Tournament championships, as well as an NCAA Elite Eight appearance and 31-5 record. Kristi Toliver was named ACC Player of the Year, Marissa Coleman won ACC Tournament MVP and freshman Lynetta Kizer won ACC Rookie of the Year. Coleman and Toliver were selected #2 and #3 overall in the '09 WNBA Draft.
In 2010-11, Maryland bounced back from a year's absence from the NCAA Tournament with a 4th place finish in the ACC regular season. The team had no seniors on its roster. Alyssa Thomas earned seven ACC Rookie of the Week honors and won ACC Rookie of the Year. Four freshmen under Frese have won the ACC's Rookie of the Year award (Langhorne, Coleman, Kizer and Thomas). Lynetta Kizer and Alyssa Thomas earned 2nd team All-ACC honors.
Personal life
Frese married Mark Thomas in 2005.In the 2007 offseason, Coach Frese learned she was pregnant with twins. She gave birth to twin boys, Markus William Thomas and Tyler Joseph Thomas, on February 17, 2008. Her son, Tyler Thomas, the younger of the fraternal twins, was diagnosed with leukemia (ALL) on September 28, 2010.
Brenda Frese Head coaching record
See also
Brenda Frese's Bio on the Maryland Women's Basketball websiteAP article on Frese, her career, and the championship win
Biographical page at UM's athletics site
Brenda Frese Feature in PressBox after 2006 National Championship
Brenda Frese's Twitter account