By GRANT TRAYLOR

Marshall Athletics

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. –Marshall women’s basketball head coach Tony Kemper has accepted the same position at Central Arkansas, thus resigning his position with the Thundering Herd women’s basketball program.

 “We are all extremely grateful to Coach Kemper for the development of our Women’s Basketball program, as well as the 11 years of coaching and teaching he provided to the student-athletes he served,” Marshall Director of Athletics Christian Spears said. “We sincerely wish him and his family the best as he pursues this new opportunity at Central Arkansas.”

 Kemper spent 11 seasons at Marshall overall with the last six serving as the head coach of the program.

 In his final season, Marshall went 17-14 overall and 9-9 in its first season of play in the Sun Belt Conference. The team’s season ended with a 62-43 loss in the Sun Belt Conference quarterfinals to James Madison, who went on to win the SBC title. The 17 wins matched the top win total during Kemper’s six seasons at the helm.

 In six years as head coach, Marshall’s women’s basketball program was 79-90 overall and 46-56 in league play.

 As Marshall moves forward, Spears said the focus is on finding a candidate to take the Thundering Herd women’s basketball program to a championship level in the Sun Belt while building excitement within the community.

 “As we prepare for the future of Marshall Women’s Basketball, we are grateful for our tremendous community, for our campus leadership and for our championship opportunities in the Sun Belt,” Spears said. “We know these attributes will help us recruit someone who shares our goals of building a championship program that is connected within our community while ensuring that our student-athletes have a remarkable experience while they are here at Marshall.”

 Kemper came to Huntington after being hired by former Marshall head coach Matt Daniel in June 2012. He was then named as Daniel’s successor in March 2017.

 Prior to Marshall, Kemper served as Associate Head Coach for two years under Daniel at Central Arkansas. Kemper also was an assistant for the UCA men’s basketball team for four years before switching to the women’s game.