Ali Jaques was formally introduced as just the third head coach of Campbell University’s women’s basketball program before an enthusiastic crowd at the Pope Convocation Center on Wednesday. The former associated head coach for the reigning Atlantic 10 Conference champion University of Rhode Island and a former head coach at Siena University, Jaques said she wanted to build on the strong tradition of Campbell’s program and return to the NCAA Tournament — not at all costs, but “the right way with the right people.”
“We will maintain the standard, and we will work — this is my husband’s joke — to get over the hump and get back to the NCAA Tournament,” she said in her introductory speech. “We will work hard for our alumni. We will work hard for all those that left their blood, sweat and tears on the court before us. We recognize those sacrifices. We’re going to embrace the success and we’re going to push it further.”
Jaques comes to Buies Creek after spending the previous two seasons as associate head coach under Tammi Reiss at Rhode Island, where the Rams won a program-record 28 games last year and qualified for the NCAA Tournament. The Rams won a program-record 28 games and won the Atlantic 10 conference tournament, qualifying was an 11 seed in the NCAA Tournament — the program’s first appearance in 30 years.
Prior to Rhode Island, she served as an associate head coach at George Washington and assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Seton Hall for one season apiece. During her time with the Pirates, the team went 19-15 overall and earned a bid to the 2023 WNIT.
Campbell University President Dr. William Downs called Jaques’ hire an important one as women’s college basketball continues to soar in popularity. Jaques replaced former head coach Ronnie Fisher, who stepped down this year after leading the program to six 20-win seasons in his 10 years and two Big South Conference regular season championships.
“We set out to look for a leader of high character — that’s one of those non-negotiable prerequisites at Campbell … a standard that was set a long time ago by the likes of Wanda Watkins and Ronnie Fisher,” Downs said. “We also set out to look for someone with a proven ability to develop student athletes. Not just ‘purchase’ them, but to develop student athletes. And we set out to look for a coach who possesses a relentless drive to win and a voracious appetite for championships.
“We didn’t just want a good basketball coach. We wanted the right good basketball coach. Someone who would embrace Campbell. Someone who would engage fully with Buies Creek and Harnett County. Someone who can and will take our fighting camels to their first championship in the Coastal Athletic Association.”
Campbell Director of Athletics Hannah Bazemore said Campbell is bringing in a leader with “proven success, tremendous energy and a genuine commitment to develop young women.”
“What makes today especially meaningful is the shared commitment of so many people in this room and across our community,” Bazemore said. “Because of your support and belief in our mission, we are able to provide transformational experiences for our student athletes and position our programs to compete at the highest level. We are incredibly excited to introduce a coach who embodies our values and who is prepared to lead this program into a bright new era.”
Jaques is a 1998 graduate of New York University, where she was a member of the basketball and soccer teams and made the Dean’s List all four years. She led the Violets to the 1997 Division III National Championship, a 1996 Final Four appearance and two Sweet 16’s. In her four years NYU posted a 101-15 (.871) record. A two-time Coach’s Award recipient, she was named a UAA Honorable Mention All-Association selection during her senior season.
Prior to her tenure as head coach at Siena, she was at Northwestern as associate head coach under Joe McKeown. She spent four years with the Wildcats after spending the 2006-08 seasons with McKeown at George Washington. In her two seasons at GWU, the Buff & Blue went 55-11 and made consecutive appearances in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. GWU was nationally ranked in both seasons, peaking at No. 8 in the AP Poll and No. 9 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll in February 2007.
She said the culture at Campbell would be one of “we above me.”
“When things get tough, we don’t say, ‘Why me?’ We say, ‘Try me.’ We get through things together. We accomplish things together,” she said. “We’re going to be visible. We want to engage the students here. And I want to know everybody by their first name. That’s my goal. I want to get students to our games. I want to have a great college atmosphere. It’s a small school that really really cares about each other, and we’re going to put something on the floor to make them proud and to be engaged.”