First of April (UPI) –Kellie Harper, who had led the Lady Volunteers team for five seasons, was sacked by the University of Tennessee on Monday.
The transfer occurred one week after Tennessee, the sixth-seeded team, fell to North Carolina State in the NCAA tournament’s second round, resulting in a 20-13 record for the 2023–24 season.
Danny White, the director of athletics at Tennessee, released a statement that read, “After a thorough review of our women’s basketball program, I have informed Kellie we are making a change in leadership.” “Decisions like these are never easy to make, especially with someone who has done so much for the Lady Vols as a three-time national champion student-athlete.”
Harper will be replaced nationwide, and the hunt will “begin immediately,” he said.
After taking over for Holly Warlick in 2019, Harper guided the Lady Vols to a 108-52 record (53-24 in conference play) in her five seasons as head coach. However, she was unable to advance the once-promising squad past the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA tournament or to win a Southeastern Conference championship.
As the starting point guard for the renowned Pat Summitt-led Tennessee Lady Vols throughout their three-straight national championship runs and their 39-0 1998 campaign, she has deep ties to the program’s heyday in the 1990s.
“It has been an honor to serve at my alma mater and to coach a Lady Vol program I love so dearly,” she stated in a statement. “I am grateful for the opportunity my staff and I have had to lead an amazing group of young women and to mentor them on the court as well as provide them with life skills that will benefit them far beyond the game of basketball.”
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