Student Athletes Win-Win-Win

When professor Lisa Williams answered her office phone, it was Rebecca Halter, one of her former students, calling with good news: She had just landed a job coaching basketball at a Northern California high school.

Williams receives many similar communiqués from her former student athletes. They get in touch to say thank you to Williams for all she does. Her office walls are covered with images of her students, many of them pictured in championship team photos.

In short, those fortunate enough to become members of Mesa College’s women’s basketball teams soon find themselves in a win-win-win situation: They win on the courts, in the classroom and, eventually, in life.

In her eleventh year as head coach of the Mesa Olympians, Williams has put together one of the winningest sports programs in San Diego County. On the last day of this year’s season, Williams won her 200th game as Olympians’ head coach, a milestone rarely reached in such a short period of time.

Meanwhile, the transfer rate of her student-athletes hovers at an impressive 70 percent. When it comes to making sure her players keep up with their studies, the coach said, “I’m a real slave driver.”

On and off the court, Williams’ agenda is to teach the importance of respect, teamwork, excellence, dedication, commitment, effective communications and appreciation of diversity.

“A lot of my students come back to campus and thank me. Learning life’s lessons pays off for them,” she said.

“Lisa Williams is one of the top women’s basketball coaches in community college athletics. Her outstanding work ethic carries over to her student-athletes. We are very fortunate to have her as a part of our athletic department,” said Dave Evans, dean of Physical Education, Health Education and Athletics.

Although she has had offers to coach at four-year colleges, and was an assistant coach at Arizona State and Northern Arizona universities, Williams prefers the community college system because, she says, “it emphasizes teaching over winning. The four-year realm is coaching only, and I love to teach.”