Meet Coach Ginny Boggess

UToledo women’s basketball debuts new head coach, players

TOLEDO – A new season entered its infancy on Tuesday when The University of Toledo women’s basketball team held an open practice in Savage Arena to offer the crowd of devoted Rocket fans their first glimpse of the 2024-25 season. The fans witnessed players shooting around and participating in a series of drills.

The open practice served as the first step in the team’s attempt to repeat the success of the last three seasons, then coached by Tricia Cullop, who left for Miami last season after 16 years.

The Rockets come into this season as the defending regular season champions, finishing with a 17-1 record in conference play and a 28-6 record overall. Last season they ended with a heartbreaking 63-61 loss to Washington State in the Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament quarterfinals.

Cullop ended her tenure as the team’s head coach when it was announced that she would become the new women’s basketball coach for the University of Miami Hurricanes. With her departure, the university needed someone new to take the helm.

Ginny Boggess was hired as the women’s head basketball coach on April 9, 2024. Boggess served as the head coach of Monmouth University for the past three seasons, leading the team to an NCAA tournament appearance in her second season, after taking over for a two-win program.

After only living in Toledo for a few months, she says the city already feels like home, given how welcoming everyone has been. “It’s an awesome city, there is a lot to do, there’s a lot of amazing restaurants, I’m really enjoy it.”

In an early look at how her players perform on the court, Boggess praised her team for their work ethic, toughness and discipline. She also discussed how her players are coming together as a team, and hopes to carry over her winning culture from Mammoth University and continue the pursuit of excellence.

Toledo women’s basketball has always recruited players from all over the country and the world, but it has also found local talent in the Toledo Area.

Freshman Kendall Braden is the newest Toledoan to join the Rockets after spending her high school years playing at Toledo Christian. After meeting with Boggess and her staff, Braden decided that UT was the right fit. Braden discussed the challenges of transition from high school to college basketball.

“The pace has been the biggest challenge for me, just because I’m playing with a lot of girls who have a lot of experience and love basketball as much as I do,” she said.

Kendall Carruthers, a sophomore from Holland, Ohio, will also make her debut as a Toledo Rocket this year after transferring from St. Francis (Pa.), where she was awarded NEC Rookie of the Year, First Team All-NEC and NEC All-Rookie Team. She explained that she wanted to play at a higher level, and to come back home and play in front of her friends and family.

Sammi Mikonowicz, a graduate student from Rossford, Ohio, aims to help continue the Rocket’s winning traditions and strives for a fourth conference championship.

“I think there’s no reason we can’t do another one. That’s probably one of the biggest things, and trying to get back to the NCAA tournament – that was a great time.”

Mikonowicz also said she wants to have fun for one more year and enjoy the sport she loves.

Toledo held their open practice in front of nearly 200 of their most dedicated fans. After seeing the Rockets in action for the first time, some attendees, like Mary Lou, who has been cheering on the women’s basketball team for 28 years, liked what they saw on Tuesday.

“They have a lot of energy; they seem to get along well; they congratulate each other; they support each other; they like the coach and the coaches,” she observed.

Lou also said that, so far, she likes what she sees from Boggess. “I think she’s got a lot of energy, and I’ve never seen these players move this fast.

”The Rockets will open their season on Nov. 4, against Marshall, the defending Sun Belt women’s basketball champion, Marshall.