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Sonoma State names new HC

In general, men's coaches at that level work a lot harder than the women's coaches, which could help -- but hiring him this late means he missed the entire summer season, pretty much, and any chance of developing the contacts he'll need.

That said, Sonoma State could do well -- Mark Rigbe was never my favorite coach, and I don't think he put much effort into it.
 
For those who go back that far, Mark Rigby's old Ursuline High School teams were outstanding in the early 1990s. He did an excellent job, especially on the defensive end. Ursuline won a state title at one point. As for his work at Sonoma State, clearly, the trajectory was downhill after his first six or seven years at the helm there. Not sure if Clay's criticism _ Rigby didn't put much effort into it _ is entirely fair. That certainly didn't seem to be the case early on at Sonoma State. As for the last decade or so, the record was not good. In any event, Rigby's legacy in the Santa Rosa area remains strong, particularly for those connected with now-defunct Ursuline (the closed school's all-female enrollment was incorporated into nearby Cardinal Newman).
 
but hiring him this late means he missed the entire summer season, pretty much, and any chance of developing the contacts he'll need.

I could be mistaken, but I think he may have been the interim coach for half of this past season.. so I presume that he has been involved with the program in some capacity since then.
 
For those who go back that far, Mark Rigby's old Ursuline High School teams were outstanding in the early 1990s. He did an excellent job, especially on the defensive end. Ursuline won a state title at one point. As for his work at Sonoma State, clearly, the trajectory was downhill after his first six or seven years at the helm there. Not sure if Clay's criticism _ Rigby didn't put much effort into it _ is entirely fair. That certainly didn't seem to be the case early on at Sonoma State. As for the last decade or so, the record was not good. In any event, Rigby's legacy in the Santa Rosa area remains strong, particularly for those connected with now-defunct Ursuline (the closed school's all-female enrollment was incorporated into nearby Cardinal Newman).


I played for the great CN teams back in the 80's early 90's. Rigby was at Ursuline at that time. He was a very good coach and the girls loved him. Ursuline won the state champ in 1992 led by the spectacular Joy Durand who went on to play at St Mary's College.
 
I'm very disappointed in this hire. It seems like a good ol buddy network was at play here. He has no experience coaching girls and has been an assistant on the men's side for a long time. I know he's a decent recruiter but now he will have to hire someone that has ties here in Northern California, and rely on them heavily. I'm not bashing because he's a male coaching women, I'm just saying that I find it odd that they couldn't find a qualified women's coach to hire, even at this late date.
 
I'm very disappointed in this hire. It seems like a good ol buddy network was at play here. He has no experience coaching girls and has been an assistant on the men's side for a long time. I know he's a decent recruiter but now he will have to hire someone that has ties here in Northern California, and rely on them heavily. I'm not bashing because he's a male coaching women, I'm just saying that I find it odd that they couldn't find a qualified women's coach to hire, even at this late date.

Like I stated, I'm pretty sure he took over midseason when things hit the fan with Rigbe so he does have experience.. then they finished with their best record in like 8 years.. so maybe it has nothing to do with the good ol buddy network... they also went through an AD change, so I'm sure this has been an ongoing hiring process..

I'm not saying this guy is the greatest coach, or the perfect fit, I dont know the guy.. but presuming that he wanted the job (as opposed to being thrown into it as an interim), he had a 2 month audition that he must have passed, and I'm sure they took the girls' perspective into consideration. Give it a chance
 
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