Michael Meek, who has coached at Southridge High School for the last 10 seasons and built the Skyhawks into a powerhouse in girls basketball, has taken the women's basketball coaching job at George Fox University in Newberg.
Meek, 40, will succeed Scott Rueck, who left George Fox early this month to take the women's job at Oregon State.
"It's something I've wanted to do off and on," Meek said, referring to coaching in college. "With how great Southridge was, they made it easy for me to be real comfortable and stay there. But this great opportunity presented itself, and I'm really excited."
Considered a great teacher of the game by former players and peers, Meek molded Southridge into a regular title contender: His teams have won five of the last six big-school state championships, including the 2010 title, and he had a 213-58 (.786) record at the Beaverton school.
"You look at his credentials and it's like, 'How could you not want someone like this?'" George Fox athletic director Craig Taylor said. "He's obviously ready for the challenge, and our kids really, really like him."
Meek led Southridge to the state championship every season from 2005 to 2008, losing two games to Oregon teams in that span. All five starters from the 2006 team went on to play in the Pacific-10 Conference, and overall, 19 of his players have gone on to play in college.
"You don't really see a place where you have all of your starting five go to Pac-10 schools, but his way of honing in that talent and having us play together, that's something not a lot of coaches can do," said Aarika Hughes, who won two titles with Meek before moving on to USC. "I feel like you're always winning with Coach Meek."
Taylor and George Fox junior guard Keisha Gordon said they were impressed that Meek didn't seem intimidated by Rueck's success at George Fox -- early in the hiring process Taylor said Rueck was "irreplaceable" -- but was more intrigued and excited by the challenge.
"What he kept saying to me was, 'I'm not afraid of this,'" Taylor recalled. "That really let me know this was the right choice."
"I don't think anyone could put more pressure on me than myself," Meek said. "Being where I was, if you didn't win a state championship you felt let down. ... We're going to worry about each possession and put the pressure on ourselves. Wins and losses and success will take care of themselves."
Gordon, who played at Heritage High School in Vancouver, said she was surprised but happy someone with Meek's credentials would be interested in the job.
"Hearing that he was even interested in Fox made me really excited because I know what he's capable of," she said.
George Fox won the 2009 Division III championship, going 32-0, and the 2009-10 team was 28-3, losing in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament. The Bruins return two all-conference players in Gordon and sophomore post Hannah Munger.
"I know how special this group of young women is, and I was looking for someone as special to coach them," Taylor said. "We got that in Michael."
-- Lindsay Schnell
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