Carolyn Jenkins enters her second season as head coach at Sacramento State. Jenkins, who became the fifth women’s basketball coach in the program’s 35-year history last year, served eight years with two of the top basketball programs in the country prior to joining the Hornets.
Jenkins came to Sacramento State after serving four years (1996-2000) as the top assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Michigan State under Karen Langeland. Prior to that, the 32-year old native of Fresno, Calif., was an assistant at Stanford University for four years (1991-1995) under Tara VanDerveer. During her eight-year tenure as an assistant coach, Michigan State and Stanford combined for a record of 180-68.
Jenkins compiled a 3-23 record with the Hornets last year, much of which was due to injuries that ravaged the team throughout the season. Jenkins was forced to use a six or seven-player rotation during the final 15 games of the season as four players (including three starters) were lost for the season due to injury or academic ineligibility. Midway through the season (Jan. 4), Jenkins even had to go as far as promoting the team’s student manager (Shannon Whent) to student-athlete because the Hornets’ roster had dwindled to seven healthy players.
While at Michigan State, Jenkins spearheaded a recruiting class that was ranked among the top-25 in the country on three occasions (1996-97 through 1999-00). The Spartans reached the postseason three times during her tenure including a second round appearance at the NCAA Tournament during the 1996-97 season. The team also received a pair of National Invitational Tournament berths in 1998-99 and 1999-2000.
During her four-year coaching stint at Stanford (1991-95), the team reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament all four years including two Final Four appearances (1991-92 and 1994-95) and a national championship in 1991-92. While at Stanford, two of her recruiting classes were ranked in the top-five in the country by the Blue Star Girl’s Report (1992-93 and 1993-94). Additionally, a total of 13 players she recruited went on to play in the professional ranks, including Kate Starbird, Kristin Folkl, Val Whiting, Jamila Wideman and Molly Goodenbour.
Not only does Jenkins have a history of recruiting great basketball talent, she also has a track record of great students. The 1997-98 Michigan State team was ranked in the top-20 in team GPA and the 1999-00 Spartan team accumulated an overall 3.3 GPA. In addition, two players from last year’s team (Rexanne Rodriguez and Kelly Hodges) were named to the Big Sky Conference All-Academic team.
In addition to her nine years of coaching at the intercollegiate level, she was also a floor coach for the U.S. Pan American team that won gold in 1993. A year later, she served as floor coach and team scout for the U.S. Senior National Team that won the world championship.
Jenkins earned her bachelor of arts and sciences degree in economics from UC Berkeley in 1990. While at Cal, she played 104 career games in four seasons with the Bears (1986-1990). In that time, Jenkins recorded a career .462 (204-442) field goal percentage while playing virtually every position.
A 1999 electee into the Fresno Basketball Hall of Fame, Jenkins was the 1986 Central Section Player of the Year at San Joaquin Memorial High School in Fresno. In 1986, she played for three Central Section championship teams (volleyball, basketball and softball), marking the only student-athlete in San Joaquin Valley’s history to play for three championship teams in the same year.
A member of the Women’s Basketball Coaches’ Association and the Black Coaches’ Association, Jenkins also served all four years at both Stanford and Michigan State as the organizer and supervisor of the respective schools’ girl’s basketball camps. This past summer, Jenkins organized the “Sacramento State Women’s Basketball Team Camp”, which proved to be the largest team camp in program history. A total of 60 teams from around the area participated in three sessions worth of team camps.
Coaching/Professional Background:
2000-Present ... Sacramento State Head Coach
1996-2000 ... Michigan State Assistant Coach
1999 ... Elected to the Fresno Basketball Hall of Fame
1991-1995 .... Stanford Assistant Coach
1994 ... Floor Coach and Team Scout, U.S. Senior National Team
1993 ... Floor Coach, U.S. Pan American Team
The Jenkins File:
Full Name: Carolyn Charise Jenkins
Age: 32 (1-29-69)
Place of Birth: Fresno, Calif.
High School: San Joaquin Memorial HS, Fresno, Calif. (1986)
Bachelor’s Degree: UC Berkeley Economics (1990)
Professional Memberships: Women’s Basketball Coaches Association, Black Coaches Association
**Information from the Sacramento State Media Guide.
Links
MSU Diary from Canadian Trip 8/24/99
Profile from Stanford