New coach takes helm of Southwestern women’s hoops

Southwestern Oregon Community College women’s basketball coach and PE/health instructor Stacia Rustad was introduced to the College Board of Education at its regular meeting on Monday night.

Rustad, who joined Southwestern on June 1, received a full-ride athletic scholarship to the University of Maine from 1992 to 1996, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in health, physical education and recreation. During her time at Maine, Rustad’s teams won three consecutive conference championships and advanced to the NCAA Tournament twice. In high school, she was named first team all-state in Alaska two consecutive years and was named state Player of the Year in 1992.

After college, she served as assistant women’s basketball coach at West Virginia Wesleyan College and St. Bonaventure University and spent two years as head coach of Victor Valley Community College. Rustad spent eight years teaching and coaching at the high-school level in California before accepting the Lakers’ head coaching job. During that time, she was named Outstanding Student Teacher of the Year as well as Delta Kappa Gamma Society High Desert Athletic League Coach of the year in 2004. Rustad completed her California teaching credential from Chapman University in 2003 and will complete her Master of Arts in Teaching this spring.

Press Release Date: June 26, 2007