Women’s Basketball Alum, Coach Dinkins Hired by Idaho State

POCATELLO, Idaho – Former NAU women's basketball star and assistant coach Laura Dinkins has been hired as an assistant coach at Idaho State. Dinkins joins the staff of the defending Big Sky champion Bengals under head coach Seton Sobolewski, who is also an NAU graduate and Flagstaff native. Dinkins spent the last two years at NAU as an assistant under former head coach Laurie Kelly.

"My experience at NAU has been nothing short of tremendous," said Dinkins. "I've loved the experiences and the memories I've made. My coworkers, the players I coached, and everything about Flagstaff truly was a blessing and I'm sad to be leaving but excited for this new opportunity."

At Northern Arizona, Dinkins worked with the guards and assisted with recruiting, scouting and academic mentoring. Her duties also included game preparation, coordination of team travel, and the overseeing of community service performed by student-athletes and staff.

Dinkins played forward at NAU from 2003-08 and produced one of the most decorated careers in program history. She is second all-time at NAU with 714 rebounds and second all-time with 252 rebounds in a single season (2007-08). She also played a program-record 1,144 minutes during the 2007-08 season and was a member of the 2005-06 team that won NAU's first Big Sky Championship, earning a trip to the NCAA Tournament.

Prior to joining the NAU staff, Dinkins spent two years playing professional basketball in Europe. She played in Germany for the Chem Cats, helping the team earn a Division II Championship. She also played a season in The Netherlands for the Perik Jumpers.

"If I ever get the opportunity to come back I would be all over it," added Dinkins. "This truly is home for me and I'm so excited to stay in the Big Sky and have the opportunity to come back to Flagstaff at least once a year. It's definitely bittersweet but I couldn't ask for a better opportunity."