Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Dana Eikenberg Named Women's Basketball Head Coach
04/20/2004 | 12:00:00 | Women's Basketball
April 20, 2004
By Jeff Honza
www.SIUSalukis.com
CARBONDALE, Ill. - After revitalizing the women's basketball program at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, Dana Eikenberg will try her hand at another rebuilding project as the new head coach at Southern Illinois University.
Saluki athletics director Paul Kowalczyk will introduce Eikenberg at a press conference at 1:30 p.m. today at Lingle Hall. The seventh head coach in the program's 44-year history, Eikenberg signed a five-year contract worth $95,000 per year (pending approval by the Board of Trustees).
She takes over a program that posted a 3-24 record last year and has lost 20 or more games for six, straight seasons. Rebuilding struggling programs is nothing new for Eikenberg, however, who did just that in four years with the Kangaroos.
In her first year as head coach at UMKC in 2000-01, she inherited a team with four ineligible players that posted a 2-25 record. Two years later, the team recorded a 14-14 mark, its first .500 season in 10 years, and finished tied for second place in the Mid-Continent Conference.
Last year, she guided her team to a 15-14 overall record and another second place finish in the MCC with an 11-5 mark.
"Dana's coaching credentials are most impressive and she's done an amazing job rebuilding UMKC," Kowalczyk said. "She's the total package - experienced, successful, knowledgeable, a team player, leader, hard worker, organized, articulate and ethical."
Eikenberg hasn't shied away from good competition, playing one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the country the last two years. Among her team's marquee wins are back-to-back victories over Big 12 Conference foe Kansas.
With increased success came increased interest in the UMKC program. In her first season , the program drew 1,739 fans for 13 home dates. With Eikenberg at the helm, that figure grew each season to a total of 7,430 in 2003-04.
"Dana exudes confidence and competence," Kowalczyk said. "She will no doubt restore the pride and tradition of SIU's women's basketball program."
Off the court, Eikenberg pushes her players to achieve academic success. During four seasons at UMKC, her teams posted at least a 3.028 cumulative grade point average.
Prior to accepting her first head coaching position at UMKC, Eikenberg served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Iowa (1997-2000). She organized Iowa's national recruiting strategy and helped lead the Hawkeyes to a Big Ten Championship in 1998.
Eikenberg has ties to the Missouri Valley Conference as well. From 1995-97, she was an assistant coach at Indiana State, where she coached the perimeter players and recruited the 1997 MVC Newcomer of the Year (Amy Amstutz). Before her stint with the Sycamores, she was a restricted earnings coach at the University of Illinois (1993-95) where she obtained a master's degree in kinesiology.
As a player at Penn State, Eikenberg was a four-year starter at point guard from 1988-92 under nationally respected head coach Rene Portland. During her career with the Nittany Lions, Eikenberg played on three, consecutive NCAA Tournament teams (1990, 1991 and 1992), while helping the program achieve its first number one national ranking in 1991.
After graduating from Penn State with a bachelor's degree in communication in 1992, Eikenberg spent one season playing professionally in Germany.
Eikenberg succeeds Lori Opp, who coached the Salukis from 2000-04. Opp's teams were a combined 23-85 overall and 11-61 in the MVC.
