Blazerzone - VSU Athletic DepartmentBlazerzone - VSU Women's Basketball
 
Head Coach
Kiley Hill
Kiley Hill<div>VSU Wins: 170<br /> VSU Losses: 89</div><br />
VSU Wins: 170
VSU Losses: 89

Entering his tenth season as head coach at Valdosta State, Kiley Hill has established himself as one of the top Division II coaches in the nation.

Hill's notoriety has been built on the strength of his defensive approach to basketball, which has earned him a 170-89 career mark as the Valdosta State head coach. In his time at VSU, the Blazers ranked among the nation's top 20 in scoring defense seven times, including a second place finish in the 2007-08 season and a fifth place finishes last season. The team has never finished below 31st nationally during his tenure.

As Hill reaches a decade at Valdosta State, he has cemented his legacy. Last season, the Lady Blazers sprinted to a 21-9 mark with a 9-3 record in the Gulf South Conference. Valdosta State participated in the Gulf South Conference tournament yet again as well as the NCAA Regional tournament.

In addition to strong defense, Hill has coached the Lady Blazers to keep control of the ball. Last season, Valdosta State led the Gulf South Conference with the lowest amount of turnovers and the best turnover margin.

Two more Lady Blazers, Leschelle Matthews and Brittany Hudson, were named to the All-Gulf South Conference team to make 11 under Hill's tenure.

In 2007-08, the Lady Blazers gained the most wins under Hill's reign as they raced to a 26-6 record, the best since the 1983-84 season, and an NCAA Sweet Sixteen finish. Hill showcased his defensive prowess in 2007-08 when Valdosta State held opponents to just 51.1 points per game.

While many individuals achieved peak performance under Hill's tutelage in 2007-08, the team proved to be more than the sum of its parts. As a group, the Lady Blazers staged an assault on the VSU record book as it hit a record 199 three pointers. The team followed her lead and made the most a VSU team ever has in a game with 14.

Hill is no stranger to his recent success. In 2006-07 the team rolled to a 24-7 record, including an 11-1 mark in Gulf South Conference play and a first-place finish in the league's East Division. Valdosta State finished the year as the nation's top defensive team and Hill earned GSC Coach of the Year honors. He was joined by two of his players being honored by the Gulf South. Peterson and Khaleh Thomas were named to the All-Gulf South Conference team.

Hill opened his VSU career by leading his team to a 15-12 record and surrendered an opponent average of 58.2 points per contest, good enough for 17th-best in the nation. Under Hill's tutelage, former Lady Blazer great, Tracy Sprolden earned All-America honors as a senior while also being named the GSC East Division Player of the Year.

After a sub-par 2001-02 year that saw the team go 10-16 while ranking 31st in scoring defense, Hill directed the Lady Blazers back into the nation's top ten in scoring defense in both the 2002-03 season when they finished sixth and the 2003-04 season with an eighth place finish while collecting a combined 33 wins against only 22 losses.

Hill joined the VSU staff in 2000 after one year as the head coach at the University of West Alabama. That was preceded by two seasons as the assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at UWA.

While at UWA, he played a large role in the Tigers rolling to a 20-7 record in 1997-98, their first 20-win season since 1982 and first conference tournament appearance in seven years. During his tenure, he recruited and signed five all-conference performers and three All-GSC academic honorees.

In 1999 Hill stepped up as the school's head coach and led his team to a 15-11 mark overall and a spot in the conference tournament.

Hill played baseball at Arkansas Tech, graduating with a degree in math education in 1995. He was the basketball graduate assistant for two years under the legendary Joe Foley before moving to West Alabama where he earned his Masters degree in continuing education in 1997.

A native of Hot Springs, Arkansas, Hill is married to the former Molly Longing of Russellville, Ark., whom he considers just as important as any of his assistant coaches.

"She is my best friend and the reason why I stay sane! She leaves no doubt that behind every good man there is an incredible, intelligent, rock solid woman," Hill said. "Molly is the unsung hero of Lady Blazer Basketball!"

The couple has two children, Whitley Ann, 9, and Skyler Len, 6.

  
Sign up for Blazer News