Rhonda Rompola

Rhonda Rompola
Sport(s) Women's college basketball
Current position
Title Head coach
Team SMU
Conference American Athletic Conference/AAC
Record 401–263 (.604), as of 2013
Biographical details
Born 1960
Sayreville, New Jersey
Alma mater SMU
Playing career
1979-1980
1981-1983		 Old Dominion
SMU
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1991–present SMU
Head coaching record
Overall 401–263 (.604), as of 2013
Accomplishments and honors

Championships

Awards

WAC Coach of the Year (1999)

Rhonda Rompola (born 1960)[1][2] is the head women's basketball coach at Southern Methodist University. She has coached the Mustangs basketball program since 1991. In her first season as coach, she posted a 17-12 record, the team's first winning season since 1981-82 when she was a player. Along with being SMU's all-time leader in coaching wins in any sport, she is also honored with an honorable mention on the all-time Old Dominion Lady Monarchs basketball team.[3]

Personal

Rompola and her husband, Mike Dement, were married in June 2007, the second marriage for both.[4] She attended War Memorial High School in Sayreville, N.J., where she was a three-time all-state and all-conference performer, leading her team to a 44-8 record and the 1978 Central Jersey Championship. In May 2005, Rompola was inducted into her high school's Hall of Fame as a member of the inaugural class.

Old Dominion player

Rompola, who graduated from SMU with a business degree in 1983, originally played at Old Dominion. She played on the Monarchs' AIAW national championship teams in 1979 and 1980. In two seasons, Rompola averaged 10.4 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 3.5 assists while shooting 51.6 percent from the floor and 83.9 percent from the foul line.

SMU player

After transferring to SMU, Rompola led the 1981-82 Mustangs to an 18-15 record, the last winning season by SMU until she became head coach in 1991-92. The 18 wins during that season were also a school record until 1992-93.

Rompola led the Mustangs in points (683), scoring average (21.3 ppg) and rebounds (8.8) in 1981-82. She still holds the school records for season scoring (total and average) as well as free throw percentage (.863). Her record of 278 rebounds in a season was broken by Shasta Smothers-Johnson in 1984-85 (310).

SMU head coach

When Rhonda Rompola first took over the SMU women's basketball team as head coach in 1991, she claimed that she was establishing a winning tradition, guiding SMU to a 17-12 record in her debut season. The time was taken to build tradition and Rompola has forged ahead the past 20 seasons with record winning percentages and the first postseason tournament appearances in school history. In her 21 years as head coach, Rompola has tallied a 366-236 mark, earning her 300th career victory Jan. 13, 2008, in a nationally televised win over Southern Miss.

During the 1998-99 season, SMU claimed its first conference championship, defeating No. 4 Colorado State in the WAC Tournament final. The Mustangs won 13 of their final 15 games, including a school-record eight in a row. With its victory over Colorado State, SMU toppled the highest-ranked opponent ever. The Mustangs followed that by knocking off No. 25 Toledo in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. It was the first time SMU had defeated ranked opponents in back-to-back games.

After opening the 1999-2000 season with three wins, SMU dropped five straight games, but picked itself up and won the next 12 consecutive games—a school record. The Mustangs took advantage of their home court, going 12-1 at Moody Coliseum—another school record—en route to winning the WAC regular season title. SMU made its third straight NCAA postseason appearance, its sixth in the last seven years. The 12th-seeded Mustangs defeated North Carolina State and became just the eighth No. 12 seed to advance in the NCAA Tournament.

The 2008-09 season saw the Mustangs reach the postseason for a second straight year. SMU reached this feat after winning the regular season title which granted them a berth in the WNIT. Rompola's recruiting skills showed through when freshman Christine Elliott put on a record performance, grabbing 21 rebounds in a Feb. 26 game against Tulane.

Rompola guided a young 2011-12 team, which was led by sophomore Akil Simpson, an All-C-USA selection, to a 14-17 record and a win over Marshall in the Conference USA tournament before falling to host Memphis. She recorded her 369th career win with a 47-38 win over TCU on November 17, 2011. The win gave her more than any other SMU head coach all-time in any sport. She earned her 400th victory on February 21, 2013.[5]

References

  1. ↑ "Texas Marriage Record Index". Texas Department of State Health Services. Retrieved October 11, 2014.
  2. ↑ "Rhonda Rompola". MyLife.com. Retrieved October 11, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Rhonda Rompola". Southern Methodist University. Retrieved October 11, 2014.
  4. ↑ O'Neil, Dana (January 17, 2008). "Dement, Rompola honeymoon includes lots of phone calls, airline miles". ESPN. Retrieved October 11, 2014.
  5. ↑ Nichols, Bill (February 22, 2013). "SMU women's basketball coach Rompola gets her 400th career win". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved October 11, 2014.