VINCENNES, Ind. - Vincennes University has taken the first step in its effort to fill the roles of its legendary Hall of Fame Coach and Director of Athletics Harry Meeks, who announced his retirement on April 24. VU Assistant Coach Ingrida Hartsfield has been named VU Women’s Basketball Interim Head Coach. Meeks announced her appointment on Wednesday, May 8.
Hartsfield steps into the role of interim coach for one season as Meeks, her mentor, retires with 33 years of service to VU as Director of Athletics and Women’s Basketball Coach.
According to Meeks, “President Johnson and I discussed what is in the best interest of our program and our student-athletes, and we concluded that Ingrida Hartsfield is the best person to fill the role of interim head coach. We believe appointing her will ensure continuity and maintain leadership within the program.”
VINCENNES, Ind. - After 33 years of outstanding service to Vincennes University, Athletic Director and Hall of Fame Women’s Basketball Coach Harry Meeks will retire in June 2024, leaving a legacy of excellence and unparalleled impact on VU Athletics and beyond.
According to VU President Dr. Chuck Johnson, Meeks’ leadership has elevated VU Athletics and profoundly influenced the lives of many.
Johnson said, “In Harry Meeks, Vincennes University has not just had a coach or an athletic director, but a true leader whose fervent dedication has been the bedrock of the VU Athletics Department. His steady hands have guided our athletics programs and shaped the lives of countless VU student-athletes, VU coaches, VU alumni, and the broader University Community. It has been an honor and a privilege to work alongside Coach Meeks, witnessing firsthand the enormous impact he has made locally as well throughout the State of Indiana and nationally.”
VINCENNES, Ind. – 2024 Region 24 Player of the Year, Freshman of the Year and Second Team NJCAA All-American Destinee Hooks (Indianapolis, Ind.) announced last week that she plans to continue her basketball career next season at NCAA Division I University of New Mexico.
“I chose UNM because I was ready for a different environment,” Hooks said. “The facilities are extremely nice and new and the coaching staff was a very good fit for me personality wise and seemed like the perfect home away from home.”
“Being named an NJCAA All-American is a very astonishing honor and one that I will never take for granted,” Hooks added. “Personally, I never saw that far ahead into the future, but it means everything to me to be noticed as one of the greats of this program.”
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers picked up a pair of big season honors with freshman Destinee Hooks (Indianapolis, Ind.) earning 2024 Region 24 Player of the Year honors, as well as being named Freshman of the Year in Region 24, while sophomore Elikya Baseyila (Paris, France) earned All-Region 24 honors for the second time.
Hooks burst onto the college basketball scene after missing nine of VU’s first 10 games by putting together a 21-point, six assist game to lead the Lady Blazers to a win over Parkland College.
Hooks earned her first of four double doubles this season with 24 points and 10 rebounds against Jefferson College.
MATTOON, Ill. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers earned their spot in the NJCAA Division I Region 24 Championship game for the second year in a row. Waiting for them was a familiar foe in No. 2-ranked Wabash Valley College.
The Lady Blazers fought hard throughout the game but unfortunately came up on the wrong end of a 95-79 final score.
Vincennes did not get off to a good start Thursday night at Lake Land College, with Wabash Valley quickly jumping ahead of VU 6-0 early in the first quarter.
MATTOON, Ill. – The No. 2 seed Vincennes University Trailblazers advanced to the 2024 NJCAA Division I Region 24 Championship game Tuesday night by defeating No. 3 seed Southwestern Illinois College 87-76.
The Lady Blazers came out of the gates firing, hitting nine three-pointers in the first quarter to help secure their spot in Thursday night’s Region 24 Championship game.
The victory Tuesday night was also significant for VU Hall of Fame Head Coach Harry Meeks who claimed his 750th career victory as head coach of the Lady Blazers.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers opened postseason play Sunday afternoon inside the Physical Education Complex.
The Lady Blazers earned the No. 2 seed in the 2024 NJCAA Division I Region 24/Midwest District Championship tournament and faced No. 7 seed Lincoln Trail College in the opening round.
Vincennes held serve on the home court, using a big third quarter scoring run to run away with a 96-54 victory over the Lady Statesmen.
MT. CARMEL, Ill. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers closed out the 2023-24 on a sour note Saturday night after falling in a hard fought battle with the No. 3-ranked Wabash Valley College Lady Warriors.
The Lady Blazers fought hard and fell just short of a late comeback attempt, falling 104-95 to end the regular season with a 17-10 record overall.
VU was able to hang with the high ranked Warriors through the early par of the game before Wabash Valley was able to break away slightly with a 6-0 run late in the first quarter.
ROBINSON, Ill. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers 2023-24 regular season is quickly coming to a close, with VU hitting the road this week for the final two regular season games.
First coming against the Lady Statesmen of Lincoln Trail College Wednesday night in Robinson.
VU wasted little time getting going offensively, scoring the first 16 points of the game and cruising to a wire-to-wire 128-59 victory over Lincoln Trail.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers closed out their final home game of the 2023-24 regular season Saturday night, pulling away early and cruising to a 90-61 win over the Lady Blue Knights.
VU Hall of Fame Head Coach Harry Meeks adjusted the starting lineup specifically for sophomore night, electing to start all five Lady Trailblazer sophomores, Katrina Litte (Valmiera, Latvia), Brie Miller (Bainbridge, Ind.), Maycee Lange (Vincennes, Ind.), Najra Voloder (Konjic, Bosnia) and Elikya Baseyila (Paris, France).
Early on Saturday night, these five struggled to score, with the Lady Blue Knights striking first and scoring the first eight points of the game.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers partnered again with the Kay Yow Cancer Fund Wednesday night to host the annual Play 4 Kay game at Vincennes University.
The Lady Blazers were boosted by a big double-double by sophomore Elikya Baseyila (Paris, France) who’s 16 points and 16 rebounds pushed the Lady Blazers to a big 101-76 victory over Southwestern Illinois College.
Vincennes got off to a good start Wednesday night, quickly building a 16-10 advantage over the Lady Blue Storm before SWIC battled back to even the game at 19-19.
CARTERVILLE, Ill. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers hit the road Saturday afternoon for another Region 24 showdown, this time facing off against the Lady Vols of John A. Logan College in Carterville, Ill.
VU freshman Destinee Hooks (Indianapolis, Ind.) was a clear and obvious player of the game again for the Lady Blazers, finishing with another double-double with 37 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists and five steals, including 22 points in the second half, 15 of which coming in the fourth quarter.
Vincennes got off to a very slow start at John A. Logan, with the Lady Volunteers jumping out to an early 18-5 lead over the Lady Blazers.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers hosted a special Valentine’s Day edition of the Region 24 rivalry with No. 6-ranked Wabash Valley College Wednesday night in the Physical Education Complex in a game that would not count towards the Region 24 standings.
VU fought hard against the highly ranked Lady Warriors, heading into the fourth quarter tied before coming up just a little short as Wabash Valley came away with the 92-85 victory.
The Lady Blazers controlled many aspects of the game, including holding a 53-31 advantage rebounding, but were ultimately undone by 34 total turnovers in the game.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers shooters were on fire from long range Wednesday night in the Physical Education Complex, riding an outstanding 19 three-point makes to setting a new VU school record for most points in a single quarter after scoring 49 points in the third quarter.
The Lady Blazers controlled the game wire-to-wire to pick up a massive 138-56 victory over the Lady Saints, the second most points a Lady Trailblazers team has ever scored in a single game.
VU set the tone early against Shawnee, after the Lady Saints scored the first three-pointer of the game, Vincennes answered back with 19 straight and extended into a 31-2 scoring run.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers closed out the weekend with a bang at the Physical Education Complex, riding a 20-0 first quarter scoring run to a big 113-53 victory over Rend Lake College Saturday night.
The Lady Blazers got the night started off strong, using an early 20-0 scoring run to break out to a 25-2 lead in the first quarter.
VU would close out the first quarter leading the Lady Warriors 33-5.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers faced another tough Region 24 battle Saturday night facing off against No. 7-ranked Wabash Valley College in a battle of the last two undefeated teams in Region 24 play.
The Lady Blazers held their own for most of the first half but were undone by a massive 21-0 scoring run by the Lady Warriors as Wabash Valley cruised late to a 125-91 victory over the Lady Blazers.
The game looked to get away from the Blazers early, with Wabash Valley setting the tone off the tip with an 8-0 run to begin the game and another 9-0 run in the first quarter to take a 19-5 lead.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers increased their winning streak to eight Wednesday night at the Physical Education Complex, going nearly wire-to-wire over the Lady Statesmen of Lincoln Trail College to win 100-68.
After the Lady Statesmen scored the first basket of the game, the Lady Trailblazers answered back with a three-pointer on the other end to take a 3-2 lead.
Vincennes would go on to hold this lead throughout the remainder of the game as the Blazers quickly jumped ahead with an 18-2 scoring run to lead 18-4 and hold a double-digit lead at 25-15 after the first 10 minutes of play.
OLNEY, Ill. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers winning streak continues to grow after Saturday night’s 83-73 victory over Olney Central College in Olney, Ill.
The Lady Blazers found themselves tied with the Lady Blue Knights at the halftime break, before coming out and exploding for 35 points in the third quarter to pick up their seventh straight victory and 10th win of the season.
VU got off to a slow start as both teams struggled early to put the ball in the basket. Vincennes was finally able to get on the board first and scored the first five points of the game.
BELLEVILLE, Ill. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers looked to be cruising to another Region 24 road victory Wednesday, leading the Lady Blue Storm of Southwestern Illinois College 41-16 at the half, before SWIC rallied in the second half to score 57 points in the final 20 minutes.
Vincennes was able to hang on to the lead however and escape Belleville with a 75-73 victory over SWIC.
The Lady Blazers got off to a slow start Wednesday night, with SWIC scoring the first four points of the game before VU answered back to take the lead at 5-4.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers hit the floor for the first time in 2024 Saturday afternoon, hosting Region 24 opponent John A. Logan College at the Physical Education Complex.
The Lady Blazers had to shake off some early rust from the long Holiday break but were able to come away with a good 84-71 victory over the Lady Vols, pushing their winning streak to five games.
VU got off to a slow start against the Lady Volunteers, playing their first game in almost a full month and John A. Logan took advantage, scoring nine of the first 11 points of the game.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers picked up their fourth straight win Tuesday night in the Physical Education Complex after defeating Jefferson College 69-67 in the final game for the Lady Blazers before the holiday break.
VU got off to an excellent start in front of the home crowd, looking for revenge against the Lady Vikings after falling at Jefferson College 71-58 two weeks ago.
Vincennes opened the game by taking an 11-3 lead before JeffCo answered back to even the game with an 8-0 scoring run.
ULLIN, Ill. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers continued their Region 24 schedule Saturday afternoon with another road matchup, this time at Shawnee Community College in Ullin.
The Lady Blazers came out firing and tied a VU school record for fewest points allowed in a quarter allowing just a single free throw in the opening quarter of play.
VU then rode this defensive showing to a very impressive 108-28 victory over the Lady Saints.
INA, Ill. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers opened up Region 24 play Wednesday night on the road against Rend Lake College in Ina, Ill.
The Blazers fell behind early but were able to take the lead back for good with a big second quarter scoring run to pick up the 78-61 victory over the Lady Warriors.
Vincennes got off to a very slow start at Rend Lake, with the Lady Warriors scoring the first nine points of the game and quickly building a 12-2 lead.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers faced another tough test Saturday night at the Physical Education Complex, facing the Parkland College Cobras.
The Cobras entered the contest Saturday with an unbeaten 10-0 record and sporting a No. 3 National ranking in this week’s NJCAA Division II rankings.
The Lady Trailblazers were looking to get back on track Saturday and trying to end a three-game losing streak and did just that after scoring 34 points on the second quarter to come away with an 83-71 victory over the Cobras.
HILLSBORO, Mo. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers hit the road to begin the week, heading to Hillsboro, Mo. to take on Jefferson College in the first game of a home and home series with the Lady Vikings this season.
The Lady Blazers got off to a slow start Wednesday night, with the Lady Vikings scoring 12 of the first 14 points and held a 16-4 lead over the Blazers.
Vincennes looked to answer back before the end of the first quarter, closing out the period with a 7-0 scoring run including back-to-back steals and baskets by sophomore Brie Miller (Bainbridge, Ind.) to cut the deficit to 19-16 after the first 10 minutes of play.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The third meeting of the Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers and the Moberly Area Lady Greyhounds definitely lived up to the hype Saturday afternoon as it took overtime to decide a winner in the Physical Education Complex.
The two teams split the first two meetings this season, with VU winning at Moberly in the first game of the season and the Lady Greyhounds winning at Three Rivers College in Poplar Bluff a week later.
Vincennes led the entire game before Moberly rallied to even the score late in the fourth quarter and closed out the game in overtime 62-61 over the Lady Blazers.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers hit the court Wednesday night for their first game after the Thanksgiving break and faced a tough challenge in No. 13-ranked Three Rivers College.
VU was led by freshman Destinee Hooks (Indianapolis, Ind.) who made her Vincennes debut Wednesday night after an injury kept her out of the first seven games of the season.
Hooks finished with 17 points, eight rebounds and four assists but the Lady Trailblazers ultimately fell to the Lady Raiders by the final score of 70-52.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers were not slowed by tip-off Monday night being delayed by 35 minutes, connecting on 16 made three-pointers, the most by a Lady Trailblazers team since March of 2021, to come away with a big 111-35 victory over Wayne County Community College.
The night got off to a slow start at the Physical Education Complex, as the Lady Wildcats caused a 35-minute delay of tip-off.
VU did not let this affect them on the court, as the Blazers quickly built a lead with a 13-0 scoring run in the first quarter to take a 15-4 advantage.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes Lady Trailblazers closed out the 2023 VU Lady Blazer Classic Saturday night with a rematch against Mineral Area College from Park Hills, Mo.
The Lady Blazers fell to the Lady Cardinals 85-74 at the 2023 Orscheln Classic in Moberly, Mo. in just the second game of the season and looked to avenge this loss in front of the home crowd.
VU got off to an excellent start against the Lady Cards, using an 8-0 scoring run to take a 12-7 lead and closing out the first quarter of play on a 13-4 run to finish with a 25-13 after the first 10 minutes of play.
VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers got to play in front of their home crowd for the first time this season and came out with a big game to win over NJCAA Division III No. 3-ranked Owens Community College 102-68.
The Lady Blazers were aided all night by a double-double from sophomore Brie Miller (Bainbridge, Ind.), the second of her VU career, finishing with exactly 10 points and 10 rebounds in the game.
Vincennes got off to a slow start Friday night, with Owens using an early 9-0 scoring run to take a 10-4 lead.
Hartsfield named VU Women’s Basketball Interim Head Coach
May 08, 2024VINCENNES, Ind. - Vincennes University has taken the first step in its effort to fill the roles of its legendary Hall of Fame Coach and Director of Athletics Harry Meeks, who announced his retirement on April 24. VU Assistant Coach Ingrida Hartsfield has been named VU Women’s Basketball Interim Head Coach. Meeks announced her appointment on Wednesday, May 8. Hartsfield steps into the role of interim coach for one season as Meeks, her mentor, retires with 33 years of service to VU as Director of Athletics and Women’s Basketball Coach. According to Meeks, “President Johnson and I discussed what is in the best interest of our program and our student-athletes, and we concluded that Ingrida Hartsfield is the best person to fill the role of interim head coach. We believe appointing her will ensure continuity and maintain leadership within the program.”
