WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

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Cara Pearson Named Assistant Women’s Basketball Coach

Cara Pearson

Pearson, who played for Hill-MacDonald for four seasons at Minnesota, spent the last four years in the same capacity at North Dakota State. With the Bison, Pearson was responsible for all on-campus official and unofficial visits and organized and maintained all compliance records with respect to NCAA rules and regulations. Pearson assisted in scouting opponents and producing reports to aid in game preparation. She also helped improve the interior game by introducing a philosophy of power post play, which produced a second-team All-Conference player and two players who finished in the top five in the conference in blocks and rebounds.

Prior to North Dakota State, Pearson spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Loyola-Chicago and one season as an assistant coach at Akron. She began her collegiate coaching career for Hill-MacDonald at Minnesota in 1996 before taking a break to play professionally, including a stint with the WNBA’s Cleveland Rockers in 1999. Pearson also played professionally in Switzerland, Finland, Luxembourg and Spain.

Pearson, who graduated from Minnesota in 1995 with a degree in Psychology, is 13th on the all-time scoring list and captained the first Minnesota women’s basketball team to receive a Top 25 ranking. She was voted the team’s most valuable player during her senior season and was an All-Big Ten honorable mention selection. In 1994, Pearson helped lead Minnesota to its first NCAA Tournament appearance and a trip to the second round. Following the season, she joined the Big Ten All Star team where the squad finished 8-0 on its tour.

“I am thrilled to welcome Cara back onto my staff,” said Hill-MacDonald. “She has had the opportunity to get a lot of exposure in different programs and I think her recent experience as recruiting coordinator at NDSU will be helpful in getting us to the next level. She has the keen ability to recognize the type of players that I like to bring in because she has played and coached in my system. Cara is going to be a tremendous asset to our staff because of her experience, knowledge and outstanding work ethic.”