Staci Schulz became the 11th head coach in Northridge
women's basketball history when she was named to the
post on August 2, 2005. An accomplished coach and former
player, Schulz’s impressive credentials have already
paid dividends in her tenure at Cal State Northridge.
The 2006-07 season was a memorable one for Schulz and
the Matadors. The team featured seven seniors and posted
a 13-16 record and a 9-5 mark in the Big West Conference.
Katie Holloway was named Big West Sixth Woman of the
Year for the second-straight season and LaJoyce King
received the Big West Best Hustle Player Award. In addition,
Schulz watched as King and Ofa Tulikihihifo were named
to the All-Big West First Team and Tulikihihifo became
Northridge’s all-time leading scorer, finishing
her career with 1,636 points. Tulikihihifo also became
just the third Big West women’s basketball player
to make four appearances on the All-Big West First Team.
In 2005-06, Schulz guided the Matadors to a 10-20 record
and an appearance in the Big West Tournament semifinals.
That year, the Matadors posted big wins at Long Beach
State and UC Irvine and Cal State Fullerton in the Big
West Tournament, along with non-conference victories
over Eastern Michigan, Southeastern Louisiana and Portland.
Three Matadors were also honored on postseason teams.
Jamie McCaa earned honorable mention all-conference
accolades, Katie Holloway was named Sixth Woman of the
Year and LaJoyce King was selected to the All-Big West
Tournament team.
In 2004-05 as the top assistant to head coach Tammy
Holder, Schulz and the Matadors posted an overall record
of 18-11, finished fourth in the Big West with an 11-7
conference record and made their first-ever trip to
the Big West Tournament. Upon Schulz's arrival in 2002,
the Matadors improved every season, going from three
wins to six in 2003-04 to 18 in 04-05.
Prior to her days at CSUN, Schulz spent four seasons
(1998-2001) at UNLV, where she worked with the guards
and perimeter players on the court and was in charge
of recruiting and scouting efforts off the court. After
joining Regina Miller's staff in 1998, the Rebels posted
a 76-41 record in Schulz's four seasons on the bench,
including an NCAA Tournament berth in 2001-02. Schulz's
previous coaching experience also includes stops at
Western Illinois (1997-98) and her alma mater, Mount
Marty College (1996-97). At WIU, she was an assistant
under Miller and taught classes in activities and basketball
before joining Miller at UNLV. At Mount Marty College,
Schulz spent a year in the admissions office and assisted
the women's basketball program with recruiting.
A native of Parkston, S.D., Schulz is a 1996 graduate
of Mount Marty College in Yankton, S.D. She earned her
bachelor's degree in education and was a four-year letterwinner
for the Lancers from 1991-96 and a three-year starter
and team captain, playing a variety of positions for
the NAIA school. She prepped at Parkston High School,
where she earned all-conference honors in basketball,
but also competed in track and golf. Schulz is a member
of the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA)
and the Black Coaches Association (BCA).
Carla Houser begins her sixth season as an assistant
coach at Cal State Northridge and her third as the top
assistant under head coach Staci Schulz. Houser's responsibilities
include serving as the Matadors' recruiting coordinator
and working with the Matador post players.
Since joining the Matador staff, Houser has been instrumental
in the numerous accomplishments earned by her players.
Under her tutelage, Houser guided Katie Holloway to
back-to-back Big West Sixth Woman of the Year honors,
establishing the center as one of the premier low-post
players in the conference. Houser also recently oversaw
the development of LaJoyce King, whose rebounding tenacity
helper her earn the Big West Best Hustle Player award
following the 2006-07 season.
Hired before the start of the 2002-03 campaign, Houser
came to Northridge following a two-year head coaching
stint at The Buckley School in Sherman Oaks, Calif.
A native of Williamsport, Md., Houser is a 2000 graduate
of UCLA, where she earned her bachelor’s degree
in sociology. Houser split her college career between
James Madison and UCLA as a power forward. She also
played
professionally for club teams in Greece and France.
Houser, who had a role in the movie “Love &
Basketball” currently resides in
North Hollywood.
Abby Vaughan was named assistant women’s
basketball coach on June 7, 2007. Vaughan joins the
Matadors after spending the 2006-07 season as an assistant
coach at San Jose State. At Northridge, Vaughan’s
responsibilities include serving as the guards coach,
the team’s travel coordinator and handling recruiting
duties.
Vaughan brings extensive coaching experience
to the position. Before her stint at San Jose State,
she serves as the head girl’s basketball coach
at Mission Bay High School in San Diego from 2003-2006.
At Mission Bay, she also served as the varsity girl’s
softball coach during the 2005 season.
Along with her duties at Mission Bay,
Vaughan also served as the associate head coach for
the Below the Rim Basketball club team. She helped guide
the team to an AAU National Championship in 2004 and
12 of her players earned scholarships at Division I,
II and III universities.
A two-year captain at Boise State, Vaughan
is the school’s all-time three-point leader with
260 and single-season record holder with 81 three-pointers
in the 2002-03 season. She sits eighth all-time on the
Bronco scoring chart with 1,091 points, a 9.4 ppg average,
in 116 games, tying her for third all-time in games
played. She also finished ninth on the all-time assist
list and fourth in three-point percentage.
Vaughan graduated from Boise State in
2003 with a bachelor’s degree in communications
and English. She resides in LA County.
Cory O’Dell was named assistant women’s
basketball coach on Sept. 24, 2007. O’Dell joins
the Northridge staff after spending the previous year
as the head coach of Chaminade University in Honolulu,
HI. With the Matadors, O’Dell’s responsibilities
will include working with the Matador post players,
exchanging game film with other schools and serving
as a mentor and peer counselor for several players.
The first women’s basketball coach in Silverswords
history, O’Dell fulfilled multiple duties in the
athletics department, including those as head coach,
the supervisor of all event management and his responsibilities
as the assistant sports information director.
In its inaugural season, the Chaminade women’s
basketball team finished 6-19. Before taking over the
women’s program in 2006-07, O’Dell spent
three seasons as an assistant coach on the men’s
basketball team at Chaminade. Prior to his time with
the Silverswords, O’Dell served as an assistant
women’s coach at the University of Alaska Anchorage
for five seasons. O’Dell is also a native of Alaska,
having been born and raised in Talkeetna. O’Dell
graduated from the University of Hawai’i at West
O’ahu with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Humanities
with an emphasis in history. O’Dell and his wife,
Christina, reside in Canyon Country.
