Ohio Bobcats women's basketball

The Ohio Bobcats women's basketball team is an intercollegiate varsity sports program of Ohio University. The team is a member of the Mid-American Conference East Division competing in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The Bobcats have played their home games in the Convocation Center since 1973.

History

Ohio University's women’s basketball program began its unofficial debut in 1965. It was created by the Women’s Sports and Recreation Department (WRA) chapter of Ohio University. The team, led by Bev Smith, competed for 8 years before they became a part of the Women’s Intercollegiate Athletics (WICA) organization. This marked the beginning of funding from athletics as opposed to education.

Upon its official debut, the women’s basketball team played their first game in the 1973–74 season. The Bobcats have won three Mid-American Conference tournament titles in 1986, 1995, and 2015. They have been MAC regular season champions four times, most recently in the 2015–16 season. They have clinched a spot in the NCAA women's tournament three times, in which they have gone 0–3, most recently appearing in the 2014–15 season.

The Bobcats' most notable season came in 1985–86. The team went 24–2 in the regular season, with a 16–2 record in the MAC. They won their first MAC season and tournament titles, as well as setting eight school records that are still held as of 2016. Their coach, 23-year-old Amy Prichard, became the first Ohio head coach to be awarded the honor of the MAC Coach of the Year.

The Bobcats' current head coach is Bob Boldon. Boldon played college basketball at Walsh University from 1993–97. After debuting during the 2013–14 season, Boldon's team posted a record of 9–20. During his second season at Ohio University, he led the Bobcats to their first winning season since the 2007–08 season. Boldon led the team to the MAC championship, clinching a spot in the 2015 NCAA tournament. The team lost in the first round to Arizona State, by a score of 74–55. In the 2018-19 season the Bobcats won 30 games, being the first basketball team to do so between both Bobcat men's and women's programs.

Seasonal Results

as of end of 2025-26 season Mid-American Conference Year Overall Rec. Conference Rec. 1973–74 10–5 NA 1974–75 12–5 NA 1975–76 3–12 NA 1976–77 8–7 NA 1977–78 5–8 NA 1978–79 11–8 NA 1979–80 10–12 NA 1980–81 6–20 NA 1981–82 9–16 3–7 1982–83 15–13 11–7 1983–84 14–14 13–5 1984–85 11–16 6–12 1985–86 26–3 16–2 1986–87 10–16 7–9 1987–88 10–18 5–11 1988–89 8–20 5–11 1989–90 9–18 3–13 1990–91 10–18 6–10 1991–92 11–17 5–11 1992–93 13–14 10–8 1993–94 17–10 13–5 1994–95 23–7 15–3 1995–96 16–12 11–7 1996–97 12–15 9–9 1997–98 17–11 13–5 1998–99 4–22 2–14 1999–00 11–17 6–10

Mid-American Conference Year Overall Rec. Conference Rec. 2000–01 9–20 5–11 2001–02 13–16 7–8 2002–03 9–19 5–11 2003–04 13–15 7–9 2004–05 13–16 8–8 2005–06 9–20 5–11 2006–07 18–12 9–7 2007–08 20–13 10–6 2008–09 13–18 7–9 2009–10 8–22 4–12 2010–11 9–22 4–12 2011–12 14–18 6–10 2012–13 6–23 1–15 2013–14 9–21 4–14 2014–15 27–5 16–2 2015–16 26–7 16–2 2016–17 22–10 12–6 2017–18 16–15 9–9 2018–19 30–6 14–4 2019–20 19–11 11–7 2020–21 15–9 11–6 2021–22 15–15 9–10 2022–23 6–23 4–14 2023–24 11–19 8–10 2024–25 6–23 4–14 2025–26 18–14 11–7 2026–27 0–0 0–0

Postseason results

NCAA tournament results The Bobcats have appeared in three NCAA Tournaments. Their combined record is 0-3.

1986 #9 First Round #8 Illinois L 69-68 1995 #14 First Round #3 Washington L 73-57 2015 #14 First Round #3 Arizona State L 74-55

Women's National Invitation Tournament results Ohio has been selected to participate in five Women's National Invitation Tournaments. Their combined record is 6-6.

2016 Round 1 Marshall W 76–68 Round 2 Virginia Tech W 64-57 Round 3 Temple L 75-61 2017 Round 1 Penn State L 74-65 2019 Round 1 High Point W 81-74 Round 2 Middle Tennessee W 59-57 Round 3 Western Kentucky W 68-60 Quarterfinals Northwestern L 61-58 2021 Round 1 Clemson L 60-65 Consolation bracket Semi-Finals Fordham W 81-64 Consolation bracket Finals UMass L 71-95 2022 Round 1 South Dakota State L 87-57 2026 Round 1 UMBC L 62–58

Coaching staff Bob Boldon Head coach 2013 Walsh University Indiana University 1997, 2003 Tavares Jackson Assistant coach 2013 University of Minnesota Crookston 2000 Chelsea Welch Assistant coach 2022 Wright State University 2018 Kaylee Gregory Bambule Assistant coach 2022 Ohio University 2021 Abby Garnett Assistant coach 2024 Ohio University 2022 Ebony Pegus Director of Basketball Operations 2021 Massachusetts

Bobcat basketball traditions Ohio is a tradition-rich school, and many of those traditions are associated with athletics events, especially basketball. Some Ohio traditions include: Rufus the Bobcat – The school mascot, a fierce yet friendly looking Bobcat that always sports an Ohio jersey with a number "1" on the back. Ohio Varsity Band – The pep band which performs at every basketball game. "Stand Up and Cheer" – Ohio's fight song "Alma Mater, Ohio" – Ohio's alma mater song

All-time records

All-time coaching records Nancy Schaub 1973–1977 33–29 0-0 N/aKathy Martin 1977–1978 5–8 0-0 N/aGwen Hoover 1978–1981 27–40 0-0 N/aBecky DeStefano 1981–1984 38–43 27-19 0Amy Prichard 1984–1990 74–9142-58 1Marsha Reall 1990–1999 123–126 84-82 1Lynn Bria 1999–2006 77–123 43-68 0Sylvia Crawley 2006–2008 38–25 19-13 0Semeka Randall 2008–2013 50–103 22-58 0Bob Boldon 2013–present 221–177129-104 2 TOTALS 1973–present 686–766 366-404 4 Source: Ohio Basketball Media Guide

As of 3/19/2026

Top five winning coaches Bob Boldon 2013–present 221–177 129-104 Marsha Reall 1990–1999 123–126 84-82 Lynn Bria 1999–2006 77–123 43-68 Amy Prichard 1984–1990 74–9142-58 Semeka Randall 2008–2013 50–103 22-58

All-time MAC records The Bobcats have won 2 Mid-American Conference tournament titles in 1986, and 2015 as well as 4 MAC regular-season titles in 1986, 1995, 2015, and 2016. At the end of the 2025–2026 MAC season, Ohio owns an all-time MAC record of 366–404 (.475) in 43 seasons of league competition. The following are the all members of the MAC past and present not counting the postseason play as of March 2026:

Akron45–19 1992Ball State40–28 1981Bowling Green 29–54 1981Buffalo 20–28 1998Central Michigan32–36 1981Eastern Michigan 39–24 1981Kent State 34–51 1981Miami39–51 1981Northern Illinois 25–21 1981–1986,1997Toledo 22–43 1981Western Michigan 34–30 1981Marshall 11–5 1997–2005Total 366–404

References

External links