Vincent named
new ASU coach
From staff reports

Appalachian State has named Darcie Vincent as its new women’s basketball head coach, ASU athletic director Charlie Cobb announced Friday.

Vincent becomes the seventh head coach in the 36-year history of Appalachian women’s basketball after spending eight seasons at California University (Pa.), where she coached the Vulcans to seven NCAA Tournament appearances and the 2004 NCAA Division II national championship.

“I’m obviously very thrilled and honored to become part of the ASU community,” Vincent said. “I had an amazing visit to campus and the environment and atmosphere at the university were great.”

Vincent replaces Adrienne Shuler, who finished with a career record of 63-110 in her six-year tenure. The Mountaineers were 8-22 last season, 5-13 in the Southern Conference. Shuler was an assistant at Furman before coming to Appalachian State.

Vincent led California to a 212-47 record over eight seasons, which included four Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference championships and four second-place conference finishes. Her stint at California was highlighted by the 2004 season, in which the Vulcans claimed the Division II national title with a 35-1 overall record.

Thanks to the national-championship run, Vincent earned the 2004 PSAC West and WBCA Regional Coach of the Year awards.

“As sorry as I am to see my memorable eight-year ride at Cal U end, my heart has been pounding since I decided to join the Appalachian family. It was a hard decision to make to leave a place that gave me such a great opportunity as a young coach, but I am ready to hit the ground running. I wish the season started tomorrow.”

Prior to her tenure at California, Vincent was the head coach at Slippery Rock for four seasons. She coached Slippery Rock to a school-record 23 wins and a trip to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight in 2000 and posted a 52-54 in her four years at the school.

A Fairmont, W. Va. native, Vincent was a three-time all-Atlantic 10 performer at Duquesne University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in business marketing in 1992 and a master’s in business administration in ‘94. She left her mark in the school’s record book, as she still ranks third in career scoring (1,538), assists (555), career steals (323), free throw percentage (.803) and career three point field goals (151). She became the first female inducted into the Duquesne Athletic Hall of Fame in 2000.

Vincent began her coaching career as a graduate assistant at Duquesne, then spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Slippery Rock University before taking over the head coaching reigns for The Rock in 1996.

“We’re excited to welcome Coach Vincent as the seventh women’s basketball coach in Appalachian history,” Cobb said. “Her record as a player and coach speaks for itself and her energy and dedication is exactly what we were looking for in someone to lead our tradition-rich women’s basketball program back to Southern Conference and national prominence.”

She inherits a team that returns eight players from last season’s Mountaineer squad, which placed seventh in the Southern Conference standings. She will be formally introduced at a press conference on ASU’s campus on Thursday, April 24.