In her short time in charge, Kamie Ethridge has taken the WSU women’s basketball program to places they have never been before. On Tuesday, Washington State announced that they plan to keep Ethridge around their program a little longer to try and continue that trend.

WSU Director of Athletics Pat Chun announced that Ethridge has signed a one-year contract extension with Ethridge. The contract will now run through the 2027-28 season.

In 2018, Ethridge took over a program that had only been to the NCAA Tournament once. Since then, she has raised the bar for the program every year. Under Ethridge’s leadership, the Cougars have seen their win total increase every season. In 2021 the team returned to the big dance. Then, in 2022, the team did it again. Ethridge has also led WSU to program records in regular season wins (19 in 2021-22), Pac-12 conference wins (11 that same 2021-22 campaign) and also led the team to their first ever AP top-25 ranking.

“Coach Ethridge continues to lead our women’s basketball program to unprecedented heights,” said Chun in the athletic department’s official release. “Kamie’s commitment to building a program centered on excellence has been inspiring to watch. We are appreciative of the incredible achievements these past few years and excited for what the future holds.”

Ethridge has found success at Washington State by focusing on recruiting around the globe. The most standout examples include Charlisse and Krystal Leger-Walker, the sister duo out of New Zealand who led the team to their first back-to-back tournament appearances. She also added players like Ula Motuga from Australia, Johanna Teder out of Teder and Bella Murekatete out of Rwanda (by way of Post Falls).

“I want to thank WSU President Kirk Schulz, WSU Pullman Chancellor Elizabeth Chilton and Director of Athletics Pat Chun for extending my contract another year,” said Ethridge. “With so much uncertainty surrounding athletics across the country, there is zero uncertainty in my belief in this great university and the leadership we have in place. I love Pullman and this community, and I look forward to continuing to build and grow the success of our program. Go Cougs!”

This season, the Cougs lose one Leger-Walker sibling with the graduation of Krystal, but they return unanimous All-American Charlisse Leger-Walker. Last season, the younger Leger-Walker sister averaged 16.1 points-per-game to lead the Cougars. Including Charlisse, WSU will return five of their top six scoring leaders from last season and they look poised to continue their historic success with a third consecutive trip to March Madness.

Ethridge signs contract extension with Washington State - Washington State University Athletics
Washington State University Director of Athletics Pat Chun announced Tuesday, Oct. 18, that women's head basketball coach Kamie Ethridge has signed a one-year contract extension keeping her in Pullman through the 2027-28 season.

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