Gas Station Holds Key to Adams’ Basketball Coaching Career

How Mark Adams got into coaching is infinitely more interesting than why.

The road that led him to UC Irvine, where he takes over the women’s basketball program this season, began at a gas station.

In 1988, Adams was a substitute teacher and pumped gasoline in Abilene, Texas, in the evening. This was temporary situation while his girlfriend--now his wife--attended Hardin-Simmons University.

His plans changed when Hardin-Simmons men’s basketball coach Dennis Harp pulled up to the pump one night. Harp had been a standout high school player in Lagrange (Ind.), just across the Indiana-Michigan border from Sturgis, Mich., where Adams had grown up. Several mutual friends had told Adams to say “Hi” if he ever got the chance.

“I was getting a tank of gas and I’m greeted by this big, burly guy with a big smile on his face,” Harp said. “He said, ‘John Stork and the guys in Lagrange say hello.’ I looked at my wife, and shook my head.”

A week later, Adams was an assistant coach at Hardin-Simmons.

“I had an opening and got to talking with Mark and liked him,” Harp said. “A couple days later, I ran into him at the mall. We got to talking some more and I offered him the job. Here I had 60-70 resumes on my desk and I hire a guy from the Exxon station on Buffalo Gap Road.”

A year later, Adams became the first women’s basketball coach at the school.

Adams is now preparing for a season that could be sweet. The Anteaters return everybody from a team that went 16-13 and reached the Big West Tournament championship game. Adams replaced Colleen Matsuhara, who wasn’t offered a new contract. But Adams isn’t new, having been an assistant the last three seasons.

“It’s a big change, things are a lot more positive,” senior forward Leticia Oseguera said. “But he’s like a drill sergeant.”

Adams’ adjustment has been easy. He recruited many of the players and was involved in their development.

“Colleen gave me a lot of responsibility,” Adams said. “I think that has made it an easy transition for all of us. The players knew me and I told them last spring what was expected. We were going to do a lot more preseason conditioning.

“That’s the big change for me. I get to run them.”

Adams came to Irvine in 1995, after spending three seasons as an assistant at Baylor. Before that, he was 46-29 and went to the NAIA tournament twice in three seasons at Hardin-Simmons.

“The first year was tough,” Harp said. “He would coach the women’s game, then come back out to be my assistant. That was tough on nights the women’s team lost. He had to get himself mentally up for our game.”

Harp, though, knew Adams could do it.

“He is as enthusiastic about coaching as he was about waiting on me at that gas station,’ Harp said.

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Adams’ first season at Hardin-Simmons was easier after he persuaded his girlfriend, a standout volleyball player, to play basketball. She also ran cross-country the following fall, when Adams became cross-country coach.

“At the time, I thought she just wanted to help me out,” Adams said. “Looking back, I think she just wanted to keep tabs on me.”

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Brooke Witt, a freshman outside hitter on the women’s volleyball team, wasn’t exactly overlooked as a senior at Bakersfield Centennial High. But it wasn’t easy to pick her out of the crowd either.

Bakersfield isn’t thought of as volleyball country, but Witt’s club team, Kern River, was loaded. It featured, among others, Janae Henry (USC), Kelly Meyer (California), Kim Stainer (UCLA), Ali Bennett (Houston) and Jill Levy (George Washington). The group won the prestigious Kaepa Festival at UC Davis last year. Most, including Witt, were on the Centennial team that won the State Division I title last year.

Witt leads the Anteaters--who host top-ranked Long Beach State Friday--with 24 service aces.

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Stephanie Rigamat’s goal tied the score with 43 seconds left in the first overtime against Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Sunday in the Big West Conference tournament championship game. But Coach Marine Cano deserved an assist.

Cano paced the sideline during the final minutes. He retrieved several out-of-bounds passes, getting the ball back into play quickly. With the Anteaters attacking the San Luis Obispo goal, that meant Cano spent a good deal of time near or in front of the Mustang bench.

He may not have saved the entire 43 seconds, but he preserved a large chunk of it.

Irvine won in sudden death, 3-2.

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Men’s basketball Coach Pat Douglass described his new job this way at the Big West Conference media day last week: “It’s exciting to be in an arena where there are ushers.”

Giving those ushers some people to seat is the hard part. Still, the few in attendance were standing for the final minute of both exhibition games last week.

“It is everyone’s responsibility to bring fans out,” Douglass said.

Douglass practiced what he preached after a media lunch Monday. He was approached by an Irvine fan, who said he intended to come to some games.

“Bring 1,000 of your closest friends,” Douglass said.

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The reports of Lamarr Parker’s move to off-guard may be a bit premature. Douglass said Parker will see more time at point guard, where he played last season. He was in the game with point guard Junior Bond at times during last week’s exhibition games.

“We didn’t look too good having Lamarr and Junior on the court at the same time,” Douglass said. “If something doesn’t work, you have to make a change.”

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Coming Attractions

A look at key games for UC Irvine this week:

* Men’s basketball opens its season Saturday against San Francisco. The game is at 7 p.m. in the Bren Center.

* Women’s basketball hosts Kilsyth, an Australian club team, in an exhibition game at 2 p.m. Sunday in the Bren Center.

* The Rolex/ITA Southern California Women’s Tennis Tournament begins at 8 a.m. Wednesday at UC Irvine. The finals start at 9 a.m. Sunday.

* Water polo faces top-ranked Pepperdine at 2 p.m. Thursday at Pepperdine. The Anteaters host fifth-ranked UCLA at noon Saturday at Heritage Park.

* Women’s volleyball hosts top-ranked Long Beach State at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Pacific at 7 p.m. Saturday. Both matches are in Crawford Hall.

* Men’s and women’s cross-country compete in the NCAA West Regional Saturday in Tucson, Ariz.