Linda Hargrove hasn’t coached in 15 years, but she couldn’t mistake the melancholy mood the first time she met with the Wichita State women’s basketball team.
“Some of them were confused, some of them were sad, but they were all stressed,” Hargrove said. “It’s been a very stressful situation for everyone involved. I don’t think anybody won in that situation.”
Hargrove, who coached WSU from 1989-98, has always prided herself on her ability to tap into what motivates a team and its individuals, but this might be her most difficult venture yet. She went from watching the Shockers in the stands one game to coaching them the next, being chosen by athletic director Darron Boatright to finish out the season after Wichita State and former coach Jody Adams-Birch agreed to part ways on Jan.