Amy Eagan, formerly of Shelbina, was named NCAA D-II Women’s Coach of the Year. The photograph above was taken after the NCAA Sweet Sixteen Regional Championship on March 15. Photograph courtesy of Drury University
SPRINGFIELD – Drury University women’s head basketball coach and Shelbina native Amy Eagan was named 2021 U.S. Marine Corps/WBCA NCAA Division II National Coach of the Year on Tuesday, March 23.
A 1995 South Shelby graduate and All-State player with the Lady Birds, Eagan received word of the award while the Lady Panthers were preparing to play at the Women’s Elite Eight in Columbus, Ohio.
Drury defeated Charleston in the national quarterfinals, then Lander in the semifinals. In the national championship game Friday, March 26, the Lady Panthers lost to Lubbock Christian 69-59.
Eagan completed her first season as Lady Panthers head coach with a 24-2 record. Drury won both the Great Lakes Valley Conference’s regular season and league tournament championships.
“Of course, it feels great to receive the National Division II Coach of the Year, but those things don’t happen without a great staff and great players. Thankful I have them all surrounding me,” Eagan said in an email to the Herald.
Eagan receives the Pat Summitt Trophy named after the longtime late University of Tennessee women’s coach.
