The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1530878
38 ■ THE WOLFPACKER WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Coming Home Williams didn't necessarily want to be a coach. She graduated from NC State with a degree in industrial engi- neering but knew she wanted to remain involved in sports somehow. By the time her Wolfpack career ended in 2017, she was ready to start leading the next gen- eration of women's basketball stars after watching Moore do the same. She immediately joined Indiana's staff as a graduate assistant. After a couple of years with the Hoosiers, Wil- liams spent the 2019-20 season at Fur- man — her first full-time coaching job. Indiana welcomed her back to the staff in 2020, working under head coach Teri Moren. With help from the future Pack assistant, the Hoosiers reached the Elite Eight for the first time in program history. Williams, who had grown up in the Research Triangle and played for her hometown team, was excited about hav- ing the opportunity to step outside her comfort zone. "Going to IU was the first time that I really left and really put myself out. I got to be around all new people and a whole new system," she said. "On top of that, I learned how to really work, and I credit that to Indiana and Coach Moren and her staff." While coaching for the Hoosiers, Wil- liams matched up against the Wolfpack twice, including a showdown in the NCAA Tournament in 2021. Indiana de- feated NC State, 73-70, in the Sweet 16, but the Wolfpack turned the tables the following December, beating the host Hoosiers, 66-58, in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge. In those games, Moore was able to watch Williams coach. When the Wolf- pack had an opening on its staff in the spring of 2022, Moore welcomed his for- mer player back to Raleigh. "I've enjoyed watching from afar as she has developed and excelled in her coaching career," Moore said in an- nouncing her return. "She was a great student in the classroom and of the game as a Wolfpack player, and I know she will help foster these same qualities in our student-athletes now." Williams was thrilled to return to her alma mater. "I was kind of wondering if it would ever get to that," she said. "It was very humbling and honoring when he did give me that call." A Learning Experience Williams had always said it would be a "no-brainer" to return to Raleigh if she received an opportunity with the Wolf- pack. Still, the Cary native found that the decision to come home was more dif- ficult than she expected. Her time in Bloomington had reso- nated with her. Indiana had helped her make the transition from playing to coaching. And yet, the opportunity to Her experience playing for head coach Wes Moore inspired Williams to get into coaching. She was an outstanding shooter during her time with the Wolfpack, hitting 37.6 percent of her three-point attempts to rank fifth in program history in perimeter accuracy. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS