June 4, 2004

ATLANTA - Sytia Messer has been named an assistant coach for the Georgia Tech women's basketball team, head coach MaChelle Joseph announced Friday.

"I'm very excited about having the opportunity to hire someone like Sytia Messer," said Joseph. "She is exactly what I was looking for in that coaching position. Sytia is a proven winner, both as a player and as a coach. As a player, she led her team to the final four and a national championship [WNIT], and as a coach she has helped her team to postseason play."

Messer comes to Georgia Tech after spending the last two years as an assistant coach at the University of Memphis. During her tenure with the Tigers program, Memphis posted a 34-25 overall record and went 15-13 in Conference USA play. The Tigers also participated in the 2004 Women's National Invitational Tournament (WNIT), and advanced to the second round before falling to Western Kentucky.

"I'm very excited to be joining a part of such a prestigious school such as Georgia Tech," said Messer, "I'm excited to have the opportunity to work with Coach Joseph and her great staff, and I am looking forward to helping the team and contributing to the excellent tradition here."

Prior to her stint at Memphis, Messer acted as an assistant coach at Arkansas State following a very successful playing career at the University of Arkansas.

In her four years as a Razorback, Messer led her team to the 1998 Final Four and the 1999 WNIT Championship. She was named to both all-tournament teams and was named the Most Valuable Player of the West Regional in the 1998 NCAA Tournament. While in school, she was a member of multiple Athletes in Action teams and served as a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Board.

"Sytia will be working with our guards, and the fact that she was an all-SEC performer will give our perimeter players someone that they can relate and look up to," Joseph said. "She is an outstanding person and role model for our team and I am looking forward to working with her."