Patterson introduced as Southeast Missouri State women's basketball coach

Rekha Patterson was introduced as the eighth coach in Southeast Missouri State women's basketball history in a press conference Wednesday morning at the Show Me Center.

It is the first head coaching job for Patterson, who had spent the past two seasons as the top assistant at Ball State.

She's the first female named to the position since Southeast made the move to Division I and fourth in program history.

"From this moment forward our program will work to be our best every day -- in the classroom, in the community and on the court," Patterson said during her introductory press conference. "We will learn how to win the moment, win the possession, win the game and win the day. We will teach our players how to fight back from adversity with hard work, discipline, resiliency and commitment. It is my goal, and my mission, frankly, to prepare these young women and to instill in them the confidence that they can do whatever their heart truly desires."

Patterson replaced Ty Margenthaler, who resigned from the position after four seasons on March 23. The Redhawks were 10-19 and 3-13 in the Ohio Valley Conference last season and failed to make the eight-team conference tournament for the sixth consecutive year.

Margenthaler posted a record of 37-78 and 18-46 in the OVC during his four-year stint.

Patterson helped the Ball State Cardinals to the Women's National Invitational tournament the past two seasons and the Cardinals reached the Mid-American Conference tournament championship during her first season on Brady Sallee's staff.

She worked alongside Kim Mulkey at Baylor from 2009-13. She was a coordinator of basketball operations before being promoted to associate coach and recruiting coordinator in 2012. The Bears went 74-2 during her last two seasons at Baylor, including 40-0 en route to winning the NCAA National Championship in 2012.

Patterson played at North Carolina A&T for four years and graduated with her bachelor's degree in public relations in 2001. She served as a graduate assistant at Baylor from 2002-04.

She had assistant coaching positions at Eastern Illinois, Ball State and Creighton from 2004-08.

"I'm extremely grateful for the coaches that have given me the opportunity to work for them and get prepared for this moment. The profession is truly a gift and I have been blessed to have my life touched by so many of my former players. Their impact on me and my experiences as a student-athlete motivate me to be the best coach that I can be."

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