SMU Head Coach
When Rhonda Rompola first took over the SMU women's basketball team as head coach in 1991, she claimed that she was establishing a winning tradition, guiding SMU to a 17-12 record in her debut season. The time was taken to build tradition and Rompola has forged ahead the past 20 seasons with record winning percentages and the first postseason tournament appearances in school history. In her 21 years as head coach, Rompola has tallied a 366-236 mark, earning her 300th career victory Jan. 13, 2008, in a nationally televised win over Southern Miss.
During the 1998-99 season, SMU claimed its first conference championship, defeating No. 4 Colorado State in the WAC Tournament final. The Mustangs won 13 of their final 15 games, including a school-record eight in a row. With its victory over Colorado State, SMU toppled the highest-ranked opponent ever. The Mustangs followed that by knocking off No. 25 Toledo in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. It was the first time SMU had defeated ranked opponents in back-to-back games.
After opening the 1999-2000 season with three wins, SMU dropped five straight games, but picked itself up and won the next 12 consecutive games -- a school record. The Mustangs took advantage of their home court, going 12-1 at Moody Coliseum -- another school record -- en route to winning the WAC regular season title. SMU made its third straight NCAA postseason appearance, its sixth in the last seven years. The 12th-seeded Mustangs defeated North Carolina State and became just the eighth No. 12 seed to advance in the NCAA Tournament.
The 2008-09 season saw the Mustangs reach the postseason for a second straight year. SMU reached this feat after winning the regular season title which granted them a berth in the WNIT. Rompola's recruiting skills showed through when freshman Christine Elliott put on a record performance, grabbing 21 rebounds in a Feb. 26 game against Tulane.
Rompola guided a young 2011-12 team, which was led by sophomore Akil Simpson, an All-C-USA selection, to a 14-17 record and a win over Marshall in the Conference USA tournament before falling to host Memphis. She recorded her 369th career win with a 47-38 win over TCU on Nov. 17, 2011. The win gave her more than any other SMU head coach all-time in any sport.
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