Women's Basketball | 6/26/2020 1:00:00 PM
MIAMI SHORES, Fla.—Kristina Baugh takes over the helm of the Barry University women's basketball program this fall as the sixth head coach in program history, director of athletics Michael L. Covone announced today.
"I would like to thank President Dr. (Mike) Allen, Vice President for Mission and Student Engagement Dr. (Scott) Smith, Athletic Director Mike Covone, Senior Women's Administrator Amanda Knight and members of the committee for the honor of being your next women's basketball coach at Barry University," Baugh said.
"After meeting the people, exploring campus, and the academic tradition it became apparent it was a great fit. Our players at Barry were a huge catalyst for my acceptance; from hearing about their influence on campus, love for each other as well as their goals that aligned with my own. We are excited to return a strong core from last year with a few additions and cannot wait to play hard and play together."
Baugh has spent the last five seasons leading the Beacons at the University of Massachusetts-Boston to an 87-49 record, including 62-20 over the last three years. The Beacons won the Little East Conference Tournament and advanced to the NCAA Division III national tournament for the first time in school history in 2017-18. Last season, the Beacons went 20-7 overall and tied for third in the LEC.
While with the Blue Devils, Baugh played a major part in two winning seasons, and helped the team to a combined 46 victories over three seasons. During that span, the CCSU advanced to the Northeast Conference tournament twice, and the NIT Tournament once. In 2013-14, CCSU posted 19 victories, second-most since the program jumped to the Division I level, and earned a share of the Northeast Conference Regular Season title, the first-ever in school history.
Under her tutelage, she saw three players earn All-Conference accolades, while one, Jess Babe, earned Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-America honors.
Prior to her arrival in New Britain, Baugh served as the head men's basketball coach of the Carolina Cheetahs of the American Basketball Association (ABA). In her one season with the Cheetahs the squad posted a combined 14 victories, and led the team to the postseason tournament in their first year of existence. She also worked on staff Winston-Salem State in North Carolina and New Jersey Tech.
A 2007 graduate of Providence College with a degree in history, she was a four-year member of the Friars' basketball program. During her career, she appeared in 109 games for the Friars, playing for coaches Susan Yow and Phil Seymore. In 2015, she earned her Master's Degree from Central Connecticut State in educational leadership.
