Eric Fundalewicz Named Women’s Basketball Assistant Coach

Photo courtesy of The Daily Courier

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – Eric Fundalewicz, a 2000 graduate of Northern Arizona University, has been hired as an assistant coach for the NAU women's basketball program. Fundalewicz has 11 years of collegiate coaching experience, having started as an NAU student assistant as an undergrad. He replaces Monique Leblanc, who left NAU after three seasons to take the head coaching position at Merrimack College (MA).

"I'm really excited to join Coach Kelly and her staff and help them take NAU to the next level," said Fundalewicz. "I started at NAU, so to come back feels like I have come full circle and I hope to be here for a long time to come. I love coaching and teaching the game and I'm excited to continue to build this program"

The well-traveled Fundalewicz (pronounced Fun-duh-LEV-itch) spent last year as the head men's basketball coach at Yavapai College in Prescott after spending the previous four seasons as an assistant coach. Following a 2009-10 season with just three victories, Fundalewicz turned the program around last year, as the Roughriders recorded 12 wins. The school decided to cut its men's and women's basketball programs following the 2010-11 season.

"I love that Eric is an NAU graduate and is familiar with our program and the success we have had," said head women's basketball coach Laurie Kelly. "He brings a wealth of knowledge in terms of new ideas for on-the-floor coaching and he has great track record of personal development. I think it was really good fit for what we needed and what he was looking for and I am very excited about having him join our staff."

Fundalewicz also began his post-graduate coaching career at Yavapai College, where he was a women's basketball assistant from 2000-03. He then spent one year as an assistant with the Cal State Northridge women's basketball program and two years at St. Francis (PA), which included a Northeastern Conference championship and an NCAA Tournament berth in 2005. Despite working with men's basketball since 2006, Fundalewicz has a wealth of women's coaching experience and is excited to return to the women's side.

"The great thing about women's basketball is that I really get to focus on coaching," added Fundalewicz. "There are a lot more X's and O's and a lot more fundamentals than the men's game and I'm excited to get back into that part of basketball."

Kelly noted his passion for the game of basketball, specifically working with women, in addition to his knowledge of junior college and Arizona high school basketball as notable attributes that Fundalewicz will bring to his new position.

"He demonstrated his love for women's basketball as an undergraduate assistant and learned a lot from (former coaches) Charli Turner Thorne and Meg Sanders," added the ninth-year Lumberjack head coach. "He has a really good grasp of the junior college level and is familiar with the Arizona high school players and what they need to do to be successful at the Division-I level. I really look for him to take the reins in terms of developing the talent that we have on our roster."

Fundalewicz and his wife, Raigan, met while both were students at NAU and were married in May 2000. The couple has two children, daughter Kree, age seven, and son Coley, age four.