FAIRFAX- On a warm, sunny day in Fairfax, VA, a new dawn is on the horizon for George Mason Women’s Basketball as the 9th head coach in program history, Vanessa Blair-Lewis, was introduced.
We are here! Stay tuned for @CoachBlair24’s introductory press conference! #GetPatriotic #A10WBB pic.twitter.com/ohcfo8Y1pD
— Daniel Frank (@n1a2v3y4) April 7, 2021
Her accolades and record certainly speak for themselves, as she has an overall coaching record of 293-235 (.555), including a 97-67 (.591) record at Mount St. Mary’s between 1998 and 2007, and 196-168 (.538) record at Bethune-Cookman between 2008 and 2021. Blair-Lewis’ career highlights include being named MEAC Coach of the Year four times, and NEC Coach of the Year one time, taking Bethune-Cookman to their first ever NCAA Tournament appearance in 2019, and posted four consecutive 20-win seasons in each of her final four seasons at BCU.
In her introductory press conference, Coach Blair-Lewis opened by thanking the University for “seeing her” and for bringing her back home to a place where she began, as a player, at Mount St. Mary’s.
“My gift is coaching, but I call it ministry,” said Blair-Lewis. “A long time ago, I realized it wasn’t about the Xs and Os. Many of us who have ever walked by a pickup game will see that those kids will get to 11 by 1s without you. So it’s not just about the Xs and Os. It’s about pouring into the lives of young people to make them better now and for our future.”
Coach continued saying, “We have such an important responsibility to yes, win a lot of games, but we have a bigger responsibility to win in the lives of these young people.”
Blair-Lewis knows the challenge that lies ahead of her. She mentioned a couple of times, while you don’t get to first place overnight, you don’t get to last place overnight either. From talking with the team, she said that the goal of this program is to get to a NCAA Tournament- a place this women’s basketball program has never been before.
Talking about the identity of this team, Coach Blair-Lewis said, “Our program will be known for a lot of things. We will be a winning program.” Talking directly to the players, she continued, “You’ve just signed up with a coach that’s crazy enough to believe that you can win. That’s absolutely crazy enough to believe, and do everything but make excuses, to do it.”
“I can’t wait to partner with not just the team, the fans, the alumni, the city of Fairfax, as we bring championships to Fairfax…I cannot wait to start hanging some banners here.”
Coach also mentioned to people by name who will be joining the coaching staff here at Mason, Chandler McCabe who has been an assistant coach of 7 years under VBL, and Andre Bolton, former assistant at BCU who is currently an assistant at Georgetown.
After the press conference, I got the chance to sit down one on one with Coach, and we discussed a wide variety of topics.
She mentioned how crazy the last few days have been, getting up here from Florida, her husband being away amidst the NBA season (he’s a NBA referee). But VBL likened finally being in Fairfax to holding a baby for the first time: something you’ve wanted and waited for so long that is finally here.
Talking about team identity, Blair-Lewis emphasized a few key points of emphasis. She plays what she calls a “pace and space” game, with a focus on pushing game tempo, scoring in transition and attacking the basket. She also mentioned she’s always been known for her defense, and I’d expect no different at Mason.
I then asked Coach about the pretty big endorsements she’s received in the past 24 hours, namely from ESPN’s LaChina Robinson and Carolyn Peck, two of the biggest names in Women’s Basketball media these days. Vanessa replied that they’re both friends of hers, and that they mutually respect each other in their craft, and that they’ve followed her career for a while now. Blair-Lewis expanded by saying their praise means a lot to her: it means you’ve done something the right way and she wants to do things the right way.
I then asked what her sales pitch is to the women currently in the locker room to get them to want to stick around, and specifically, a player like Marika Korpinen, who has been a leader at Mason for so long. VBL replied saying she wants Marika to feel she can build something that can outlast her time here at Mason: that’s what legacy means. She then emphasized again that being first place doesn’t happen overnight, nor does being in last. The biggest thing is she wants the team to buy in, that’s how they’ll achieve their goals.
My final question to Coach I wanted to be a lighthearted one- in a late-game situation with the lead, do you foul up three? She laughed, I think caught a little by surprise, before obliging, she would play it straight up defensively. She’ll take the odds of a 30% three point shooter over an 80% free throw shooter any day.
Overall, I’m very excited about this new chapter in Mason Women’s Basketball history. I can’t wait for November to see both new coaches, Kim English and Vanessa Blair-Lewis finally take the reigns and see what they can do with the teams.
It’s a new dawn in Fairfax: let’s see what the sunrise brings.
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