Marsha Frese Hometown: Cedar Rapids, Iowa Position: Associate Head Coach Birthdate: 03/02/1972 Experience: Fourth Season Email: mfrese@uiuc.edu

Marsha Frese enters her second season as Associate Head Coach and her fourth season overall with the Fighting Illini in 2006-07. A nationally respected recruiter with prior stints in the Big Ten Conference and the Atlantic Coast Conference, Frese spearheaded two top-25 recruiting classes in her first two years in Champaign as an assistant coach. The 2005-06 freshman class of forward Tori Arndt, point guard Lori Bjork, forward Chelsea Gordon, guard Danielle Gratton, center Erin McCarthy, and forward Lacey Simpson was ranked No. 18 nationally and No. 2 in the Big Ten by Blue Star Report.

Then after being promoted to Associate Head Coach last season, Frese helped land this year's lone freshman Jenna Smith, a top-70 player accoding to Blue Star and the top player in the state of Minnesota last season.

"Marsha is a tireless worker and the point person for our recruiting efforts," said head coach Theresa Grentz of Frese. "She is very organized, task-oriented, and dedicated to the profession of coaching. She does a splendid job with our guards and is truly one of the up and coming young coaches in our profession."

A 1995 graduate of Rice University with a bachelor of arts in communication, Frese has excelled both as a player and a coach, having been a major cog in several rebuilding efforts on her way to Illinois.

As an assistant coach at the University of Maryland in 2002-03, Frese led the recruiting efforts and helped the Terrapins sign one of the best classes in program history. McDonald's All-American Shay Doron and third-team All-American Kalika France committed to the Terps, giving Maryland the 10th-best recruiting class in the nation, according to Blue Star. The class was also the sixth-best in the country by All-Star Girls Report for classes with two signees or less.

Prior to her arrival at Maryland, Frese served as recruiting coordinator and assistant coach at the University of Minnesota, and was part of one of the biggest turnarounds in NCAA history. After posting an 8-20 record the prior season, the 2001-02 Gophers established themselves as a force in women's college basketball, winning 14 mores games than the year before. Frese again led the recruiting efforts as Minnesota not only posted a 22-8 record, but also attracted the 15th best recruiting class in the nation, according to Blue Star.

Frese was a part of another basketball turnaround at Ball State, where she spent two seasons as an assistant coach from 1999-2001. At BSU, Frese helped orchestrate back-to-back winning seasons for just the second time in program history. Mid-American Conference Freshman of the Year, Johna Goff, was part of their first recruiting class.

As a player, Frese excelled on both the high school and college levels. A former Miss Iowa Basketball, Frese helped Cedar Rapids Washington High School to the 1988 Iowa state title. During her prep career, she led the state in scoring twice (1989 and 1990) and was named 1990 Miss Iowa Basketball by both USA Today and Gatorade Circle of Champions. A two-time first team All-Stater, Frese finished her high school career as one of the Top 25 all-time leading scorers in Iowa history. She has since been inducted into the Washington High School Athletic Hall of Fame.

At Rice, Frese tore up the nets, lettering all four years and finishing her career ranked sixth in three-pointers made. She also left with the Rice school record for best three-point field goal percentage in a single season.

Before embarking on her coaching career, Frese spent four years as a television sportscaster. After graduating from Rice University, she was the first female sports anchor for KALB-TV in Alexandria, La., and also served brief stints as a color analyst for Rice University and Louisiana College radio broadcasts.

Frese is married to WCIA-TV sports director Jason Elliott. The couple's first child, Kylan Nicole, was born on July 29, 2005.

THE FRESE FILE

Birthdate: March 2, 1972

High School: Washington High School, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

COLLEGE EDUCATION
Rice University
Bachelor of Arts 1995
Major: Communication

PLAYING EXPERIENCE
Washington High School, 1986-90
• Named Miss Iowa Basketball
• Inducted into Washington Athletic Hall of Fame
• Helped team to 1988 state title
• Two-time first team all-state

Rice University
• Ranks sixth all-time in 3-pointers
• All-time leader in single-season three-point percentage

COACHING CAREER
Ball State University
Assistant Coach, 1999-2001

University of Minnesota
Assistant Coach/Recruting Coordinator, 2001-02

University of Maryland
Assistant Coach/Recruiting Coordinator, 2002-03

University of Illinois
Assistant Coach, 2003-05
Associate Head Coach, 2005-