PINE BLUFF – The search for the next women's head basketball coach at the University of Arkansas is officially over.
Former West Memphis High School girls Coach Erica Leak was named as the Golden Lions' new leader Thursday afternoon in front of a large, energetic crowd inside the conference room of the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Center on the UAPB campus.
"It is my pleasure to greet you all on this very special day in the history of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff," UAPB Chancellor Laurence B. Alexander said during his opening remarks. " This week we're celebrating founders, the 151st anniversary of [UAPB], and this is just a little extra special icing on this cake."
The jubilant energy in the building signified how excited those in attendance were for the announcement that Leak would become the program's next coach.
The loud cheers that followed after Chris Robinson, UAPB's Vice Chancellor for Intercollegiate Athletics, formally introduced her enforced that enthusiasm.
Leak's hiring comes a little more than six weeks after the resignation of Dawn Thornton, who spent five years at the helm before UAPB she had stepped down April 6. Later that day, Alabama A&M held a news conference announcing her as the Bulldogs' new coach following the departure of Margaret Richards.
Coincidentally, it was Thornton's team that handed Richards the final loss of her eight-year tenure at Alabama A&M when UAPB earned an 82-74 victory March 14 in the first round of the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament in Birmingham, Ala.
Thornton turned UAPB into a formidable group after she took over in 2019. The Jackson, Miss., native had served as the head coach at fellow SWAC member Prairie View A&M and NCAA Division II Shorter (Ga.) University before coming to Pine Bluff. She increased the Golden Lions' win total by two games in her debut season and by her fourth year had the team in the league title game for the first time ever.
This season, Thornton led UAPB to marquee victories against NCAA Division I foes SMU and Arkansas over a six-day span and eventually guided the Golden Lions to a 17-16 record, including a berth in the semifinals of the SWAC Tournament. She ended up going 54-88 at UAPB and is 102-158 in eight seasons overall as a coach.
Immediately following Thornton's exit, UAPB appointed her assistant, Nicole Mealing, as interim head coach and mentioned that a national hunt for her replacement would begin immediately.
That search ended with Leak, 41, who's set to embark on her first collegiate coaching job. But the Arkansas native and former WNBA star, who was a four-year standout at Louisiana Tech, said she's more than ready to take on that challenge.
"I'm from Wheatley, Ark., where the population is 321 and everyone is my cousin," Leak said, which elicited laughter from the crowd. "So if Louisiana Tech head Coach Leon Barmore can find me there during such a time, I can assure you that with the resources we have here, I -- along with my staff -- will find student-athletes who exemplify the golden standard."
Leak certainly made a difference during her previous coaching stops on the high school level, starting at Forrest City, which had won just one game the season before she arrived in 2015.
The former Parade All-American, who was a three-time all-state selection, the 2001 Arkansas Gatorade Player of the Year and a second-round pick in the 2005 WNBA Draft, led the team back to respectability during her initial three seasons until directing them to a double-digit win total in her fourth season for the first time since 2007. In her final season, Forrest City narrowly missed out on the postseason because of tiebreakers and went 12-12 overall, including a third-place finish in the 4A-5 Conference.
In 2020, she headed to West Memphis, where she led the Lady Blue Devils to the Class 5A title game in her first season. Leak would take West Memphis to the semifinals the following two seasons and a spot in the first round during the 2023-24 campaign.
Now she's intent on making things happen at UAPB.
"Players will understand and respect the rich historic tradition [at UAPB], and they will play for pride," she said. "They will understand what it means to put that jersey on with "UAPB" going across their chest, and they will know it's bigger than them. ... They will also understand the importance of giving back and serving their community and knowing that serving someone other than themselves is very important.
"We're going to build something special here, but it'll take time to put the right pieces together. But we'll compete at a high level and shake up the SWAC."
