Rock Valley College
Rockford, Illinois

Misty Opat named new women’s basketball coach

Contact: Dave Costello (Admin), 815-921-4516

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Rock Valley College is pleased to announce Misty Opat as its new head coach for women’s basketball.

Opat brings eight years of Division I coaching experience with her to RVC. From 1999-2002 she served as an assistant coach at the University of Illinois at Chicago where she also served as the Recruiting Coordinator. In 2000 her UIC recruiting class was ranked 19th in the country for NCAAA Division I. Opat also held assistant coaching positions at Fresno State University (1998-99) and the University of Kansas (1995-1998) where in both cases she was also heavily involved in recruiting and scouting.

“We are extremely fortunate to find a coach with the experience and expertise of Coach Opat.  She comes to RVC as the complete package,” says RVC Athletic Director Mark Maneval. “She is going to bring a commitment to excellence with her teams and most importantly will make the education of her student athletes her highest priority.” 

Opat earned an Associate of Science degree from Garden City Community College in Garden City, Kansas, where she was a two-year team captain in basketball and was named to the all-conference and all-region teams in both seasons. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas, where she earned NAIA (Division II) All-American honors as a player. Opat then went on to obtain a Master of Science in Sports Administration from Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kansas. She is currently working on her MBA at Roosevelt University in Schaumburg, Illinois.

The Golden Eagles won the regional tournament last season and earned a trip to nationals where they finished in seventh place. In the 2007-08 season RVC won its first ever conference title for women’s basketball.

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