Southeastern Oklahoma State University Women's Basketball

In 2005 Darin Grover took over as head women’s basketball coach at Southeastern Oklahoma State, becoming just the fourth head coach in the program’s history.   His 2019-20 squad earned the program its first Great American Conference championships, taking home hte regular season and tournament titles after posting a 22-7 record and earning a bid the NCAA Central Regional before the NCAA canceled the postseason due to the Covid-19 pandemic. That squad was led by Katie Webb who took home the league's Player of the Year award and moved all the way up to second on Southeastern's all-time career scoring list. He was named the Great American Conference Coach of the Year following the 2014-15 season after leading his squad to a 20-10 record.  That season featured three All-GAC selections, including first teamer Emily Williams who became the 11th player to join the 1,000 point club and the third to do it while playing for Grover.   In his time at the helm he has tallied a 225-185 mark and taken the squad from a 10 win team his first season to a foursome of 20-win seasons, doing so in the 2008-09, 2010-11, 2014-15, and 2019-20 seasons, as well as three trips to NCAA Regional Tournaments. He has amassed a 276-183 record over his coaching career.   Seven of his 13 season have been winning season and he has never won fewer than 10 games in a season.   In conference play between the Lone Star Conference and the GAC he has tallied a 148-116 mark, going 47-31 in the LSC before stepping into the GAC where he has gone 101-85.   Grover surpassed the 100-win mark with the school in his sixth year at SE in an 89-65 victory over Texas A&M-Commerce on Feb 21, 2011, and would pick up his 150th win helming the Storm to a 96-83 win at home over Henderson State on Feb. 7, 2015.   He reached his 200th overall career win with a win 76-64 win over Northwestern Oklahoma State on Feb. 14. 2013, and he would eclipse the 300-win plateau just under seven-years later with a 63-41 win over Southern Arkansas on Jan. 16, 2020.   Over his time at SE Grover’s teams have had 31 all-conference honorees, including eight first team selections and seven second team.   In addition to his Coach of the Year honor in 2015, he has coached Lone Star Conference North Division Newcomer of the year Destiny Brown who would also go on to earn All-South Central Region honors as well as Webb who took home GAC Player of the Year honors and earned All-American honors.   His teams have also been solid in the classroom where women’s basketball ranks near the top of the team GPA standings among SE’s programs and has placed more than 50 players on the All-Academic teams between the LSC and the GAC, with Staci Willis earning Academic Player of the Year honors in 2006 following his first year at the helm.   The Storm have been a force on its home court under Grover where they have compiled a 124-55 record between Bloomer Sullivan Gym and Bloomer Sullivan Arena which is winning at a 69.3 percent clip, with five seasons of 10 or more home wins and just one in which they finished under .500 with a 6-7 record.   Prior to coming to Southeastern, Grover spent three seasons at NEO in Miami, Okla., where he put together an 81.1 winning percentage as he led the Lady Norse to a 77-18 record and was named the Region II Junior College Coach of the Year.   In his time as head coach at NEO, his squad was ranked as high as No. 8 in the nation and won the Region II Championship in 2002-03, making him the youngest coach in NEO history to win a regional championship.   Before taking the helm as the head coach for the Lady Norse, Grover spent seven seasons an assistant coach during which time the program amassed a 177-52 record, while claiming two regional championships (2000 and 2002) and three Bi-State Conference championships (2000, 2001 and 2002). In 1999-2000, the Lady Norse finished fourth at the NJCAA National Tournament and in 2001-02 were NJCAA National Runners-up. He also coached five All-Americans and two WNBA draft picks in his time as an assistant.   A native of Miami, Okla., Grover earned an associate’s degree from NEO in 1992 after spending two seasons as manager for the men’s basketball team.   Following that he spent one season at The University of Tulsa as a manager for Tubby Smith before going on to receive his bachelor’s degree from Oklahoma State in 1995. Grover later earned a master’s degree in health and human performance from Northeastern State in 2002.   Grover, wife Courtney, daughter Sydney and son Case, reside in Durant.              Overall   Conf      Postseason 2023-24      10-18     6-16  2022-23      7-20      5-17      2021-22      12-17     10-12     GAC Tournament 2020-21*     13-8      11-7      GAC Tournament 2019-20      22-7      16-6      GAC Tournament Champs, NCAA Central Regional 2018-19      14-13     12-10     GAC Tournament 2017-18      13-15     11-11     GAC Tournament 2016-17      17-10     15-7      GAC Tournament 2015-16      13-16     11-11     GAC Tournament 2014-15      20-10     12-8      GAC Tournament 2013-14      13-14     10-10     GAC Tournament 2012-13      10-17      8-12     GAC Tournament 2011-12      11-17      6-10     GAC Tournament 2010-11      20-8      10-4      LSC Tournament, NCAA SC Regional 2009-10      19-9       9-5      LSC Tournament 2008-09      21-9      11-3      LSC Tournament, NCAA SC Regional 2007-08      15-13      6-6      LSC Tournament 2006-07      17-10      7-5      LSC Tournament 2005-06      10-17      4-8 19 yrs      277-248    180-168 at NEO       77-18 TOTAL       354-266 * shortened season played in the spring semester due to Covid

Jo Cotton-Black joined the Southeastern Oklahoma State womens basketball coaching staff in 2006 after wrapping up her playing career for SE at the end of the 2005-06 season.   In her time as an assistant SE tallied a 146-107 mark and helped the Savage Storm to a trio of 20-win seasons, doing so in the 2008-09, 2010-11 and 2014-15 season, as well as two trips to the NCAA South Central Region Tournament.   Over her tenure as an assistant SE teams have had 20 all-conference honorees, including six first team selections and five second team.   In addition to assisting to head coach Darin Grovers 2015 Great American Conference Coach of the Year honor, she has coached Lone Star Conference North Division Newcomer of the year Destiny Brown who would also go on to earn All-South Central Region honors.   SE teams have also been solid in the classroom where womens basketball ranks near the top of the team GPA standings among SEs programs and has placed 25 players on the All-Academic teams between the LSC and the GAC.   The Storm have been a force on its home court in her time on staff where they have compiled an 83-33 record between Bloomer Sullivan Gym and Bloomer Sullivan Arena which is winning at a 71.6 percent clip, with four seasons of 10 or more home wins and just one in which they finished under .500 with a 6-7 record.   Before becoming an assistant she played her final year of eligibility for Southeastern after transferring from Southeastern Missouri State.   Cotton-Black led the team in scoring her senior season at 13.7 per game as well as rebounding at 5.7 per contest. She earned second team LSC-North Division honors for the season.   Prior to SE, she spent one season at Southeastern Missouri State where she was the Ohio Valley Conference Newcomer of the Year after starting all 27 games and leading the team in scoring.   She began her collegiate career playing for Grover at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M where she was a two-time all-region selection, the team MVP in 2003 and an NJCAA Academic All-American.   She is married to Jordan Black and the couple have two children, Bayler and Hesston.   A native of Crowder, Okla., Cotton-Black received her degree from Southeastern in 2005 and added a masters degree in 2007. Sami Jo Cotton-Black Assistant Coach Sami Jo Cotton-Black joined the Southeastern Oklahoma State womens basketball coaching staff in 2006 after wrapping up her playing career for SE at the end of the 2005-06 season.   In her time as an assistant SE tallied a 146-107 mark and helped the Savage Storm to a trio of 20-win seasons, doing so in the 2008-09, 2010-11 and 2014-15 season, as well as two trips to the NCAA South Central Region Tournament.   Over her tenure as an assistant SE teams have had 20 all-conference honorees, including six first team selections and five second team.   In addition to assisting to head coach Darin Grovers 2015 Great American Conference Coach of the Year honor, she has coached Lone Star Conference North Division Newcomer of the year Destiny Brown who would also go on to earn All-South Central Region honors.   SE teams have also been solid in the classroom where womens basketball ranks near the top of the team GPA standings among SEs programs and has placed 25 players on the All-Academic teams between the LSC and the GAC.   The Storm have been a force on its home court in her time on staff where they have compiled an 83-33 record between Bloomer Sullivan Gym and Bloomer Sullivan Arena which is winning at a 71.6 percent clip, with four seasons of 10 or more home wins and just one in which they finished under .500 with a 6-7 record.   Before becoming an assistant she played her final year of eligibility for Southeastern after transferring from Southeastern Missouri State.   Cotton-Black led the team in scoring her senior season at 13.7 per game as well as rebounding at 5.7 per contest. She earned second team LSC-North Division honors for the season.   Prior to SE, she spent one season at Southeastern Missouri State where she was the Ohio Valley Conference Newcomer of the Year after starting all 27 games and leading the team in scoring.   She began her collegiate career playing for Grover at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M where she was a two-time all-region selection, the team MVP in 2003 and an NJCAA Academic All-American.   She is married to Jordan Black and the couple have two children, Bayler and Hesston.   A native of Crowder, Okla., Cotton-Black received her degree from Southeastern in 2005 and added a masters degree in 2007.

In the summer of 2020 Kaylie Ragsdale transitioned into the full-time assistant coaching position after spending the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons as the team's graduate assistant.   From 2018-20 the team compiled a 36-20 record, highlighted by Great American Conference Regular Season and Tournament Championships and a bid to the 2020 NCAA Central Regional before the team's season was ended with the cancelation of the NCAA Tournaments due to Covid-19.   Ragsdale was a three-year starter for the Savage Storm women's basketball program from 2013 through 2016, earning a pair of All-Great American Conference and Academic All-GAC honors.   Over her time with the Storm she scored 702 points and pulled down 489 rebounds after transferring in as a sophomore from Murray State College. While at MSC, playing under SE Hall of Famer Crystal Robinson, she also started every game her freshman year and scored 304 points with 175 rebounds. For her collegiate playing career, between SE and MSC, she scored 1,006 points and hauled in 664 rebounds.   Following her undergraduate work, she stepped into the role of Southeast Oklahoma Women's Ministry Coordinator from 2016-17, and then moved on to the Oklahoma FCA headquarters in Edmond, Okla., as the Central Oklahoma Women's Ministry Director from 2017-18. She would return to Southeastern in her graduate assistant position in 2018 to pursue a career in coaching.