MOREHEAD, Ky. – Newly appointed Morehead State women’s basketball coach Tom Hodges has announced the addition of three assistant coaches. The newest members of the staff are Eric White, Lindsey Hicks and Christian Stefanopoulos.
“Overall I couldn’t be any happier with the staff that Dr. Andrews and Brian Hutchinson have allowed me to hire. Transitioning from being an assistant coach, I know the value of having great people around you, and that is what we have in our program – great people with great character. Eric, Christian, and Lindsey are as good a staff as I could have hoped for, and I look forward to achieving all our goals here at Morehead State with them by my side and our outstanding student-athletes front and center.”
White comes to Morehead with a plethora of Division I experience, including two stints at Middle Tennessee State. He also coached at OVC member schools Austin Peay and UT Martin, helping to win conference titles at both while he was on staff.
Hicks was a member of three Big Ten championship teams and one Final Four squad while lettering four seasons at Purdue University. She has played professionally in Europe for the past seven years.
Stefanopoulos returns to Morehead after serving previously on former coach Matthew Mitchell’s staff in 2006-07. She has also spent the last three seasons on staff with Mitchell at the University of Kentucky where she helped guide the Wildcats to an Elite Eight appearance this season.
In addition to his experience at APSU. MTSU and UTM, White most recently served as head girls coach at Franklin County High School in Winchester, Tenn., in 2009-10. He began his coaching career as a student assistant at University of Montevallo – his alma mater – from 1993-96 before moving on to UT Martin from 1997-00. He helped head coach Gary Van Atta win an OVC co-championship in 1999, and the Skyhawks posted a 60-54 overall record during White’s tenure.
White made his first stop at Middle Tennessee State in 2000-01 and helped head coach Stephany Smith for two seasons. The Blue Raiders made an appearance in the WNIT in 2001-02. White moved on to Shelbyville (Tenn.) Central High School to help head coach Rick Insell (currently the head coach at MTSU) lead the Golden Eaglettes to a 37-1 record and a state title.
White also served three seasons on the coaching staff at Austin Peay where he helped mentor the Lady Govs to the 2004 OVC regular season and tournament championships. He served one season as an assistant at ETSU in 2007-08, and the Lady Bucs were 20-12 and 14-4 in the Atlantic Sun Conference. They also made an appearance in the WNIT. White returned to MTSU to serve as Director of Basketball Operations in 2008-09.
He is a native of Boaz, Ala., and earned his first bachelor’s degree (social science) in 1996 from Montevallo. He also earned another bachelor’s degree in health and human performance from UTM in 2000.
“I couldn’t be any happier to have Eric on board with us here at Morehead State. He is a tireless recruiter that has as good a name in the Southeast and Midwest as anyone out there when it comes to finding and recruiting players. Eric brings a ton of experience to our staff along with the very best attitude and positive energy I could ask for – hiring Eric here at Morehead was my number one priority when picking a staff, and I couldn’t be any prouder to have him here with us,” said Hodges. “He will organize our recruiting efforts and be instrumental in practice planning and opponent preparation.”
After wrapping up her highly successful collegiate career, Hicks has been just as successful in the professional ranks in Europe. She has played with teams in Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark and Finland. The 6-foot-1 post player has been one of the best rebounders in Europe for the past six seasons.
A native of Lebanon, Ohio, Hicks was a Parade Magazine High School All-American and a member of the nation’s top-ranked recruiting class at Purdue in 1999-00. While at Purdue, she helped the Boilermakers win three Big Ten titles and was team captain as a senior. Her class left as the winningest in school history.
She began her professional career in Finland in 2004-05 where she averaged 19.1 points and 9.3 rebounds for Peli-Karhut. A year later, she was named league MVP while playing for Vitus Bering in Denmark. She averaged 25.2 points and 13.4 rebounds per game.
She also spent three seasons with Marbo Boras in Sweden where she ranked in the league’s top 10 in scoring and rebounding. In 2008-09 she was named to the All-Swedish Team. Last year she played with Nyon Basket Feminine in Switzerland. While in Europe she helped coach youth teams and participated in numerous community service and physical fitness projects.
In the offseason, Hicks has served as a personal trainer in the Lexington and Cincinnati areas.
“Lindsey Hicks is a home run hire for our staff and for Morehead State. Lindsey expressed her interest in coaching, and I couldn’t think of anyone more suited for Division I level than Lindsey Hicks,” said Hodges. “She brings invaluable experience from her collegiate and professional careers, while having a great personality to relate to everyone we will be associated with. Lindsey will coach our post players and recruit the highest level student-athletes to Morehead State that we can find.”
Stefanopoulos served on the MSU staff in 2006-07 that won a then-school record 13 OVC games. She has spent the last three season at the University of Kentucky serving as the program’s video coordinator.
Prior to coming to MSU, she was a standout player for Austin Peay and Thomas More College. She helped the Lady Govs to two consecutive OVC championships in 2002-03 and 2003-04 – the latter with fellow MSU assistant Eric White on staff. She was on the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll in 2002 and helped APSU win the OVC’s Academic Achievement Banner.
Stefanopoulos transferred to Thomas More near her hometown in Northern Kentucky. She guided the Saints to a PAC conference co-championship. She graduated in 2006 with a bachelor’s degree in exercise science.
She has also coached at Boone County High School, her alma mater, where she was a McDonald’s All-American nominee in 2002. She played on her high school varsity team since the sixth grade, excelling at Highlands High School from the seventh through 10th grade years.
“Christian was someone I always had in the back of my mind that one day I would love to hire. Energy and enthusiasm are going to be two keys to our success here at Morehead State and those two words define Christian Stefanopoulos. She has learned from coach Matthew Mitchell over the last 5 years, witnessing the highest level of Division I basketball- she will be invaluable to us on the recruiting trail and on the practice floor. Christian will coach our perimeter players while selling the program one prospect at a time.
