Mankato coach exceeds high expectations

Pam Gohl found out she would become a head coach again on July 31, just about three months before Minnesota State Mankato would begin its most anticipated women's basketball season in years. Coach Lori Fish, who had refashioned the Mavericks from overmatched to outstanding in only four years, was offered her dream job -- returning to her hometown to coach St. Cloud State -- and left Gohl, her top assistant, to lead the Mavs in their payoff season.

The only thing that really concerned Gohl were the high expectations surrounding a team that went 23-9, made the NCAA Division II Sweet 16 and averaged 81 points a game last season. She needn't have worried. A core of strong-willed upperclassmen made sure the Mavericks lost nothing in the transition, carrying them to a No. 1 ranking and their first appearance in the NCAA Elite Eight, where they will play Michigan Tech in the quarterfinals at noon today in San Antonio.

"My husband and I were a little nervous about the fact that we were picked No. 1 in our conference, and the expectations were so high," said Gohl, a former head coach at Iowa's Briar Cliff University who spent two years on Fish's staff in Mankato. "But it didn't matter what the expectations were. The girls were so focused.

"None of us has really had time to think about the historic part of all this. We're just focused on the work. But I've been around enough to know what a special year this is."

Gohl and her players will have plenty to reflect upon when the time comes. The Mavericks are 29-2, surpassing the previous school record of 25 victories set all the way back in 1986. Their high-scoring, blazing-fast style expanded the program's fan base and drew 2,039 to Taylor Center -- the largest crowd in the arena's history to watch a stand-alone women's game -- for their victory over Fort Lewis in the NCAA regional final.

The Mavericks rose to their first No. 1 national ranking on the backs of three seniors from Minnesota who have combined to score more than 3,700 points in their college careers. Alex Andrews of West Concord, Heather Johnson of Janesville and Jo Noreen of Avon committed themselves to a program that had not had a winning season in eight years. Fish convinced them they could be the ones to change that, and the second-year coach put the team's fate into their hands immediately.

"We were coach Fish's first recruiting class, and she threw us in there right away," said Johnson, a 5-8 guard who leads the Mavericks in scoring with 16 points per game and was named most valuable player of the NCAA Central Region tournament. "We knew it would be tough. We got beat up a lot. But we were determined to make ourselves and the program better. We didn't want to be a team that never did anything."

As freshmen, they finished 12-16, gaining one victory over the previous season. The Mavericks flipped that around to 16-12 in 2006-07, setting up last year's milestone season.

Johnson, Noreen and Andrews all averaged in double figures as juniors, taking the Mavs back to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1986. This season, they are part of a four-guard starting lineup that stymies opponents with defensive mismatches and balanced scoring. The Mavericks substitute freely -- nine players average 11 minutes or more -- and are again averaging 81 points per game, outscoring opponents by an average of 17 points.

Gohl said her team is smart, close-knit and dedicated, which made for a smooth coaching transition. Her history with the Mavs meant she had to make only a few adjustments. Gohl was able to quickly hire two good assistants, Amy Sander and Sarah Tracy, and she came up with about 40 new plays to replace the ones used by Fish, now a Northern Sun conference rival.

Gohl remains an interim head coach because of the state-mandated hiring process. Interviews for the position are scheduled to begin in April. Having made her case on the court, Gohl hopes to be back next season, ready to keep those expectations rising even higher.

"Our seniors have done some amazing things in their four years, and it's just the beginning for the rest of our players," she said. "We have some really talented underclassmen, so we should still be one of the teams to beat next year. As exciting a year as this has been, I think we're in position to continue our success."

Rachel Blount • rblount@startribune.com