Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Women's Basketball Introduces Coaching Staff
5/3/2012 8:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
May 3, 2012
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Bucknell women's basketball announced Christian Stefanopoulos and Mike Lane as the latest additions to its coaching staff on Thursday. Stefanopoulos and Lane join first-year head coach Aaron Roussell and returning assistant Katie Adams on the sidelines for the Bison ahead of the 2012-13 season.
"I am extremely excited about the group that we were able to assemble," said Roussell. "I said I wanted a fun, energetic and hungry staff that was of the highest character and we have definitely found that. The players and I are very fortunate to be able to surround ourselves with these coaches."
Stefanopoulos comes to Bucknell following a two-year stint as an assistant at Morehead State during which time the Eagles posted a record of better than .500 overall and in the Ohio Valley Conference. The 2010-12 seasons were her second run with Morehead State as she also served on the staff during the 2006-07 campaign when she helped the squad to a then-school record 13 OVC victories.
In between turns at Morehead State, Stefanopoulos spent three years as an assistant at the University of Kentucky (2007-10) where her duties included serving as the Wildcats' video coordinator.
Stefanopoulos' playing career took her to Austin Peay and Thomas More College in her home state of Kentucky. In 2002-03 and 2003-04, she helped Austin Peay to a pair of OVC Championships. She later led Thomas More to a PAC co-championship title. Stefanopoulos, who was also a 2002 McDonald's All-America nominee at Boone County High School, earned her bachelor's degree in exercise science from Thomas More in 2006.
"Christian came very highly recommended from some of the biggest names in our game," said Roussell. "She is a go-getter and is going to be a huge asset to our recruiting efforts over the next few years."
Lane will reunite with Roussell at Bucknell after the two coached together at the University of Chicago for two years. After serving under Roussell and helping the Maroons to some of the most successful seasons in school history, Lane has directed Division III Dominican University to equally impressive heights during his five years as head coach and athletics facilities manager with the Stars. The 2011 Northern Athletics Conference Coach of the Year, Lane led Dominican to its first-ever NAC South Division title as well as its first NAC conference tournament appearance. This past season, the Stars advanced to the conference championship, another first for the program, finishing with a 19-9 record overall and a 13-4 mark in the NAC.
Under Lane's tutelage, Dominican either set or tied the school's NCAA-era record for wins in a single season three times with the most recent coming in 2010-11 when the team finished 20-7. That same year, the Stars also broke program records in three-point field goals with 216, giving them the seventh-best mark in NCAA Division III ranks, scoring average (74.1), field goal percentage (.437) and assists (14.8/game). Dominican also ranked sixth nationally in three-point field goal percentage at better than 37 percent.
"Convincing Coach Lane to come to Bucknell was huge for me. He has one of the best minds in the game and has done an unbelievable job fixing the Dominican program," said Roussell at Lane's hiring. "He opened the eyes of many by transforming his recent teams into 20-game winners and being on the verge of the NCAA Tournament. No one would have believed that was close to being possible five years ago. There will be a level of comfort for me having him back on our bench next season."
A native of South Windsor, Conn., Lane is a 1993 graduate of Notre Dame where he earned his degree in business administration with a concentration in marketing.
Remaining on Bucknell's coaching staff for a second year is Adams. Adams spent last season working with the Bison guards, serving as video coordinator and coordinating the team's community service efforts. Originally from Ogden, Utah, she graduated from Rutgers University in 2008 with a degree in exercise science and psychology.
"Being able to keep Katie on board was important to me and to our players," said Roussell. "I know she had other options, but it says a lot about her commitment to this program and her belief in our future success to stay on our staff. She has all the tools to become a standout in this profession and I am eager to watch her develop."
Roussell was named Bucknell's ninth head coach on April 17. For the past eight years, he was the head coach at the University of Chicago, where he compiled a 161-50 (.763) record, including a 52-5 mark with a 43-game regular-season winning streak over the last two seasons.
