Darsch, who led OSU women to final, dies at 68
Nancy Darsch, who guided the Ohio State women’s basketball team to the 1993 NCAA championship game and went on to coach in the WNBA, has died. She was 68.
She had Parkinson’s disease and died Monday in her hometown of Plymouth, Massachusetts. Brian Agler, who coached with her at Seattle in the WNBA, said her family informed him of Darsch’s death.
Darsch started her college coaching career as an assistant at Tennessee under the great Pat Summitt. Darsch led the Buckeyes for 12 years, from 1985 to 1997, compiling a 234-125 record and making seven appearances in the NCAA Tournament. Ohio State went 28-4 in during the 1992-93 season and lost to Texas Tech 84-82 in the NCAA championship game.
“Nancy was a trailblazer, coach and mentor. I was lucky to have such a caring and kind coach,” former Ohio State star Katie Smith said in a statement. “She loved what she did and the people she
shared it with. Always had a smile on her face, a fun comment to make you laugh and a playful punch on the arm. She will be dearly missed.”
Current Ohio State coach Kevin Mcguff said he kept an eye on the
Buckeyes program and gained an admiration for Darsch as he started his coaching career at Miami University and continued it at Notre Dame.
“She did such an amazing job here and really elevated the program to national prominence,” Mcguff said. “The 1993 Final Four was a special moment in this program's history. Just an incredible coach.”
In March 1997, Ohio State announced the firings of both Darsch and men's basketball coach Randy Ayers. The OSU women were coming off a 12-16 season, but Darsch said she thought she deserved another year to turn the program around. Six weeks after her contract was terminated, Darsch received about $50,000 more than Ohio State owed her to buy out the final year of her contract.
“I take with me a lot of good memories and special relationships as I leave,” Darsch said in a statement released by Ohio State at the time. “I now look forward to a new professional challenge.”
After her time in Columbus, Darsch went to the WNBA and was the inaugural coach of the New York Liberty in 1997. She helped the team reach the WNBA Finals that first season when they lost to the Houston Comets.
“We are grateful for Nancy's leadership as a pioneer of this game,” the
Liberty said in a statement. “Her contributions to the advancement of both collegiate and professional women's basketball and her passion for the game will forever be felt.”
Darsch later coached the Washington Mystics and was an assistant for the Minnesota Lynx and Seattle Storm. She was a coach with the Storm from 200813 and helped them win a championship in 2010.
“She was a great coach and even better person. The thing that jumped out to me was her lack of ego and how humble she was,” Agler said. “Veteran players really liked her because they respected her wisdom and that's what she brought to the table. Basketball wisdom or life wisdom.”
Smith said she respected Darsch for her role as a pioneer in women's basketball. “She was somebody who continued to push women's basketball forward by helping us gain and do the things we wanted to do,” Smith said.
Darsch also worked as an assistant coach for USA Basketball, helping the women's team earn its first gold medal in 1984. She returned as an assistant for the 1996 team that won gold in Atlanta.
Darsch graduated from Springfield College in Massachusetts.
Dispatch reporter Adam contributed to this story.
Jardy