Marsha Reall is an American former head coach of women's college basketball. She resigned after coaching one season at Purdue, to their then best ever record of 18–9. Reall started her coaching career at Saginaw Valley State University in 1979, becoming the first woman coach for their women's basketball program.

Early life

Marsha Reall graduated from

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...

. She is from

Mount Gilead, Ohio Mount Gilead is a village and the county seat of Morrow County, Ohio, United States. It is located 41 miles (66 km) northeast of Columbus. The population was 3,660 at the 2010 census. It is the center of population of Ohio. The village was esta ...

. Reall was an assistant coach for Ohio State University in the 1970s.

Coaching career

Saginaw Valley State University

Reall began her coaching career at

Saginaw Valley State University Saginaw Valley State University (SVSU) is a public university in University Center, Michigan in Saginaw County. It was founded in 1963 as Saginaw Valley College. It is located on in Saginaw County's Kochville Township, approximately north of ...

, becoming the first female coach for the women's basketball team. In the 1984–85 season, the Cardinals posted a 32–1 record, a record that still stands today. That team also holds the records for most points (2,753), most field goals made (1,163), and best field goal percentage (.485). Reall's coaching record at SVSU stands at 151–37.

Ball State University

Reall was the head coach for one season at

Ball State University Ball State University (Ball State, State or BSU) is a public university, public research university in Muncie, Indiana. It has two satellite facilities in Fishers, Indiana, Fishers and Indianapolis. On July 25, 1917, the Ball brothers, indust ...

. She finished the season with a record of 13–14, at the time her only losing season ever. It was the best record for the team for the past decade. She was on a three-year contract, and the director of women's athletics at Ball State was disappointed to see her go, and hoped their next coach would stay at Ball State even if they are successful there. Purdue did not recruit Reall for long, with their associate athletic director saying "Two weeks ago, I didn't know Marsha Reall existed". She also said, "We don't have multi-year contracts, but I don't think that will be a problem."

Purdue University

Reall coached Purdue University's women's basketball team for one season, reaching a record of 18–9, the best year Purdue had to date. Her resignation came as a surprise. The associate athletic director, who was in charge of women's sports, said "I learned of Marsha's decision yesterday, and it came as a surprise. I know Marsha feels strongly she has to do this. She had a good, successful year, and we hate to see her do this."

Ohio University

She took over the head coaching job in

Ohio University Ohio University is a Public university, public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confeder ...

in 1990. She coached there for nine seasons, including a Mid-American Conference Championship in 1995, and was voted coach of the year twice. She had the most wins in program history until her total was surpassed by

Bob Boldon Robert John Boldon (born May 1, 1975) is an American women's basketball coach and former basketball player. He is the current head Ohio Bobcats women's basketball, women's basketball coach at Ohio University. He previously held the same position ...

during the 2019–2020 season. She finished her coaching career with a record of 123–126.

Early life

Coaching career

Saginaw Valley State University

Ball State University

Purdue University

Ohio University

Head coaching record

References

Further reading