First basketball season drawing closer for women
Utah State women’s basketball Head Coach Raegan Pebley is starting a new phase in her life.
Pebley is not only gearing up for the Aggies’ first hoops season in 16 years, she is a new mother as well. She gave birth to a 10-pound, 22-inch boy, Joseph, on July 9.
“It’s not an easy thing to do [be a mom and coach], but an athletic environment is a great place for a kid to grow up in,” she said. “There are a lot of goal-driven people in athletics so he’ll learn how to set and achieve goals, and how to live a healthy lifestyle. And he’ll know how to treat women, that’s for sure.”
Even though his parents are both coaches, his dad, Keith, is a football coach; there will be no pressure for Joseph to play sports. Raegan said that even if they never encourage him to play sports, Joseph will feel pressure because of his parents’ jobs.
“We just want him to be confident, know the difference between right and wrong and love to learn,” she said. “If he plays sports, that is great. We just hope he is involved in something.”
And to continue her involvement with the Utah State women’s team, Raegan has hired a nanny who started work Monday. She will also receive help from her new assistant coaches.
Tricia Bader-Binford was hired in April and the Aggies added Bradley Dance on Tuesday.
Bader-Binford, a former WNBA player, came to the Starzz after Raegan moved to Cleveland to play for the Rockers. When Raegan was done playing for the Rockers, ironically Bader-Binford then moved to Cleveland.
Dance, a Utah State University alumni who most recently coached at Riverton High School, contacted Raegan shortly after she was hired in the summer of 2002 saying he was interested in a job.
“It’s a long time coming for him,” she said. “He is very, very eager to get involved with this
program.”
An ever-growing program that is.
The Aggies added four players over the summer, including Ali Aird who was announced last week.
“Ali is a big-time signing for Utah State,” Raegan said. “Not only in actual size, but in the caliber of player that she is as well. She can really help the team get on the map.
Raegan said Aird received offers from BYU, Utah and San Diego State, and if she had played a second year at Salt Lake Community College, she would have likely received even more offers.
The Aggies also signed Camille Brox, Tracee Kennington and Terrin Johnston.
Even though only a few of the players stayed in Logan for the summer, Raegan made sure the team kept in touch.
Not only did the women have a summer workout routine to do, they were also assigned two books to read and took turns writing letters to each other.
“We felt like it was important to create as many common experiences as possible, even though they weren’t with each other,” Raegan said. “That way when they do come to school they have something in common with their teammates.”
The team will also experience the first season as Aggies together by taking on a schedule that sends them as far away as Western Michigan and as close as Weber State. Along with the Wildcats, USU will face Southern Utah and UVSC to round out in-state play.
BYU and Utah are not on the Aggies’ schedule for the first year for just reason, Raegan said.
“We have so many Division I schools that we can pick from in this state now,” she said. “That doesn’t help your recruiting any. We’re not afraid of playing BYU and Utah.”
It is important for Raegan to be able to show a recruit that the team doesn’t just play in Utah and California, as dictated by the location of most of the Big West Conference schools.
The Aggies open the season Nov. 21 at home against Southern Utah.
-juag@cc.usu.edu