SoCon Coach of the Year to address graduates 

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (May 5, 2023) – ETSU women’s basketball head coach Brenda Mock Brown has been bestowed the honor of giving one of the commencement speeches at the 2023 ETSU Commencement ceremony, which will take place on Saturday, May 6 in the Ballad Health Athletic Center (Mini Dome).

Guest tickets will not be required for the ceremony, and there is no limit on the number of guests per graduate as the event is open to the public. Livestreams will be available for those who cannot attend. There are two ceremonies on Saturday — one at 10 a.m. and one at 2:30 p.m.

Coach Mock will be speaking at the 10 a.m. ceremony.

“I am excited and honored to be chosen as the commencement speaker,” said Coach Mock. “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to be a part of celebrating the journey of some amazing students at ETSU. Every one of them has a unique story, and my goal is to honor and encourage them on Saturday as they leave this institution to make an impact in their respective communities.”

Coach Mock and her team accomplished an historic run during her first season as head coach of the women’s basketball team. Coach will be one of two speakers encouraging graduates to celebrate their accomplishments at Commencement.

Visit https://t.co/6DIE05g5hL for details. pic.twitter.com/hRbFIqqcIk

— ETSU (@etsu) May 5, 2023

In her first season at ETSU, Coach Mock – the Southern Conference Coach of the Year – guided the best turnaround in all of NCAA DI Women’s Basketball for 2022-23. Taking over a program that finished 6-22 last season, Mock’s squad finished 25-10 overall for a 19-win improvement. That total not only led the NCAA this season, but also ranks as the seventh-largest turnaround in NCAA DI history.

Mock is also the only coach in NCAA DI Women’s Basketball history to guide two programs to a top-10 improvement all-time as she accomplished a similar feat at UNC Asheville in 2016. ETSU broke numerous school records, won two postseason games — the first postseason wins since 1995 — won two of three games at the UNLV Thanksgiving MTE and defeated Power 5 opponent Vanderbilt at home in front of a large crowd.

To kick off the week, Mock spoke to a handful of graduates on Wednesday inside the Culp Center who were partaking in an early graduation ceremony. Those graduates are members of ETSU athletic programs who are still in competition this spring.

For more information about commencement, visit www.etsu.edu/commencement. 

For more information on Buccaneer women’s hoops, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the women’s basketball page.