Southeast Missouri State University Women's Basketball

The 2025-26 season marks the second for Briley Palmer at the helm of Southeast Missouri Women’s Basketball.    Coach Palmer earned her first NCAA Division I victory on November 25, 2024, with a 70-58 victory over rival Southern Illinois in the home opener at the Show Me Center. On the season, the Redhawks finished the campaign with a 6-23 overall record and a 4-16 mark in OVC play.    SEMO swept the season series with SIUE, defeated Tennessee State in Nashville, and defeated Western Illinois at the Show Me Center for the four victories in conference play in Palmer’s first season at the helm.    Coach Palmer coached the second Ohio Valley Conference ‘Freshman of the Year’ in the program’s history in guard Zoe Best as she joined Tesia Thompson (2017-18) as the only other Redhawk to win the award. She was also selected to the OVC’s All-Newcomer team and was a second team All-OVC selection under Palmer’s guidance.  Briley Palmer was hired as the ninth head coach in Southeast Missouri women's basketball history on May 15, 2024. A native of Farmington, Missouri, Palmer enters her first NCAA Division I job after spending four years as head coach at Mineral Area College which is located less than two hours away from Cape Girardeau.   There, she compiled an overall record of 77-40, including a 25-5 mark and second-place finish in the Missouri Community College Athletic Conference (MCCAC) in 2023-24. The Lady Cards, who concluded the season ranked 24th, spent 10 weeks in the NJCAA Top-25 Poll and put together a 14-0 home record. Their 25 victories tied a school record for most in a season. In all, Palmer coached 28 players who went on to play Division I basketball during her time at MAC.   Palmer was an assistant at MAC for eight years before being named head coach. She was instrumental in the Lady Cards winning the Region 16 title twice. During the 2014-15 campaign, Palmer helped MAC claim its first-ever Region 16 Championship. The Lady Cards ranked as high as #13 in the NJCAA Poll her first year as an assistant coach.   She played at both MAC and Christian Brothers University. Palmer finished a two-year stint with the Lady Cards ranked third in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage. Following her final two seasons of college basketball at CBU, she remained there to be a graduate assistant for one year.   Palmer graduated from Farmington High School in 2007. She led Farmington to its first district championship, 24-straight wins and a final four appearance in the state tournament as a senior. Along the way, she earned All-Region, All-District and All-Conference honors her final prep season.    She and her husband, Jimmy, have two daughters, Dayton, and Nola. Jimmy is the Athletic Director at North County High School.   Briley Palmer File   Hometown Farmington, Mo.   Educational Background High School: Farmington College: Christian Brothers University (Memphis, Tenn.), 2011  Bachelor of Arts in Corporate Communication Central Methodist University (Fayette, Mo.), 2016 Master of Arts in Education   Playing Experience Mineral Area College (2007-09) Christian Brothers University (2009-11)   Coaching Experience 2011-12 Assistant Coach/Graduate Assistant, Christian Brothers University 2012-20 Assistant Coach, Mineral Area College 2020-24 Head Coach, Mineral Area College   Year-by-Year Records             Overall            MCCAC 2020-21                                   9-13                 7-8 2021-22                                   21-11               9-6        2022-23                                   22-11               8-4 2023-24                                   25-5                 6-3 (2nd) Total                                        77-40               30-21 Winning Percentage               .658                 .588   What they are saying about Briley Palmer . . .   "Southeast Missouri is getting a rising star in Briley Palmer. Her passion, work ethic and ability to build relationships will pay dividends right away. She understands what it takes to build a winning program as she has done that at Mineral Area College. Her energy is infectious, and she will no doubt make an immediate impact on the program and in the community. Her teams compete with energy, passion, and attention to detail in a relentless pursuit of winning championships."   Shauna Green University of Illinois Head Women's Basketball Coach   "Briley Palmer is a home run hire for SEMO! She is a relentless worker, an incredible leader of young women and a tremendous coach. The Southeast Missouri community will absolutely love Coach Palmer, her contagious energy and the passion she has for basketball and developing student-athletes."   Hana Haden Georgia Southern Head Women's Basketball Coach   "Coach Palmer has clearly been a successful coach on the sidelines for many years. What has impressed me is her desire to get better every day. She is a constant student of the game and pours passion into her program. She has always considered her players family and that will be a great foundation for a bright future."   Molly Miller Grand Canyon University Head Women's Basketball Coach  

Kate Rolfes will begin her collegiate coaching career at Southeast Missouri under head coach Briley Palmer. Rolfes most recently finished her playing career this past season at Missouri- St. Louis during the 2024-25 campaign. She started all 28 games for the Tritons, averaging 10.5 points-per-game and shot .375 from the field, and .346 from behind-the-arc.     She finished second in the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) for three-pointers made and three-point percentage.     Rolfes began her career at Maryville University where she played from 2020-2021. She then transferred to Webster University where she played from 2021-2024. Her team(s) at Webster won the SLIAC Conference Tournament three years in a row, making three National Tournament appearances. She concluded her college career with a 106-26 overall record.     Rolfes is the daughter of Incarnate Word Academy (St. Louis, Mo.) legendary head coach Dan Rolfes. She won three state titles while playing for Incarnate Word, graduating in 2020. In her high school career, her team had a 112-15 record over four year and was a part of the nation's longest winning streak.     She is the daughter of Dan and Lisa Rolfes and is pursuing a master's in education at Southeast.

Jace Lance will begin his first season as a member of the Redhawks coaching staff as a graduate assistant for the 2025-26 season under head coach Briley Palmer. He most recently finished his collegiate playing career at Missouri Valley College where he played all four seasons for his father, Chad Lance.    In four seasons, Lance became the all-time assists leader in Missouri Valley College history. He finished sixth in scoring, third in three-pointers made, and was a four-time all-conference selection for the Vikings.    Lance was also a four-time scholar athlete during his collegiate career before graduating in 2024.    A four-year letterwinner at Marshall High School in Marshall, Missouri, Lance is the all-time leading scorer in the schools' history with 1,836 points.  He was a four-time all-conference and all-district selection under head coach Jason Varner.    He was also a standout on the football field for Marshall, playing all four years while becoming the all-time leader in receiving touchdowns at Marshall High School. He was a four-time all-conference and all-district selection.    He graduated from Missouri Valley College with a Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Education. He graudated with Cum Laude honors in 2024. He is pursuing a master's in education at Southeast.    Jace is the son of Chad and Ellen Lance and enjoys hunting, fishing, and hanging out with his dog, Moose.