Suzy Merchant Hometown: Traverse City, Mich. Position: Head Coach Experience: Third Season

Suzy Merchant was named head coach of the Michigan State women's basketball program on April 30, 2007. Merchant has been a part of winning programs every step of her career. In her 14 years as a head coach, she has won more than 60 percent of her games, collecting a 246-145 (.629) career record as a head coach at Saginaw Valley State, Eastern Michigan and MSU. She is the winningest coach in Eastern Michigan history, compiling a 147-91 record in her nine seasons.

Last season, Merchant topped the 20-win plateau for fifth-straight season and for the sixth time in her career. The Spartans earned a No. 9 seed in the NCAA Tournament and advanced to the Sweet 16 with wins over No. 1-seed Duke and No. 8-seed Middle Tennessee; Merchant's first career NCAA Tournament win. She led the Spartans to a 13-5 record in the Big Ten, tying them for second in the conference. The wins tie for the second most in program history, while the finish is the best since the 2004-05 Big Ten Champions. Six Spartans earned postseason Big Ten accolades, led by Allyssa DeHaan taking home second team All-Big Ten honors.

This past summer, Merchant spent time with USA Basketball as an assistant coach for the Women's World University Games team in Belgrade, Serbia. Team USA went undefeated and took home the Gold medal, topping Russia, 83-64 in the championship game.

In her first season at Michigan State, Merchant took the youngest team in the Big Ten to its seventh-straight postseason trip, advancing to the championship game of the WNIT, and tied for the most wins (23) by a first-year Spartan basketball coach in MSU history. The 23 wins tied for the fourth-winningest season in program history and also tied a career-high for Merchant.

In addition, the Spartans collected their fifth-straight 20-win season against one of the toughest schedules in the Big Ten, and won 10 conference games for the sixth consecutive season. MSU also advanced to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament for the fifth-straight year after beating Minnesota in the quarterfinals.

Individually, Allyssa DeHaan earned first team All-Big Ten honors, while a pair of freshmen - Kalisha Keane and Brittney Thomas - were honorable mention all-conference and on the All-Freshman Team. In addition, to their success on the court, four Spartans were named to the Academic All-Big Ten Team, including DeHaan, who was also a CoSIDA Academic All-District IV Third Team selection.

In her first two years in the Greater Lansing area, Suzy Merchant has gone to great lengths to become an integral part of the community. In her time off the court and out of the office, Merchant can be seen at many community service events in the Great Lansing area. She has been an Honorary Chair for numerous events, including the MSU Children's Initiative, Hike for Hospice, Women Working Wonders, Women's Center of Lansing, Advent House Ministries, Old Newsboys Shoe and Coat Drive, Muscular Dystrophy Association, Ronald McDonald House and Ele's Place Race.

During her tenure with the Eagles, Merchant guided Eastern Michigan to a record of 147-91 (.618), including three 20-win seasons, three postseason appearances and two Mid-American Conference West Division titles. Merchant's 2003-04 Eastern Michigan team claimed the MAC West Division and MAC Tournament championships for the first time in school history, earning the program's first-ever bid to the NCAA Tournament en route to a 22-8 record. She followed that impressive season by winning 23 games in 2004-05, the most in school history, and sent EMU to the postseason for the second straight year with a WNIT appearance.

In 2005-06, the Eagles reached the 20-win plateau for the third consecutive season and won their second MAC West title with a 15-1 conference record, notching the most league wins in school history. Their 22-8 overall record put them into the postseason for the third-straight year as the Eagles earned a bid to the WNIT. While on maternity leave for most of her last season, Merchant's Eagles finished second in the MAC West Division with a 10-6 league record and finished 16-13 overall.

Before coaching at Eastern Michigan, Merchant spent three seasons at Saginaw Valley State, posting a 54-29 (.651) record. After inheriting a team with a losing record, Merchant quickly built the SVSU program into a winner, going 15-11 in her first season before going 19-11 in year two while earning a berth in the NCAA Division II Tournament for just the second time in school history. In her final season, Saginaw Valley State collected a 20-7 record and was ranked as high as 15th in the nation.

The Traverse City, Mich., native, has 15 years of collegiate coaching experience, all in the state of Michigan. A four-year starter and three-year captain at Central Michigan, Merchant began her coaching career at Oakland University, serving as the top assistant coach for three seasons.

THE MERCHANT FILE

PREVIOUS COACHING EXPERIENCE: Assistant Coach at Oakland University (1992-95); Head Coach at Saginaw Valley State University (1995-98); Head Coach at Eastern Michigan University (1998-2007).

FAMILY: Husband, Gary Rakan and son, Tyler Rakan.

COACHING RECORD: 246-145 (.629) in 14 years as a head coach - 45-25 in two seasons at Michigan State, 54-29 in three years at Saginaw Valley State University (1995-98), 147-91 in nine years at Eastern Michigan University (1998-2007).

EDUCATION: Bachelor's degree in health/fitness from Central Michigan in 1991; master's degree in educational leadership from Saginaw Valley State in 2000.

PLAYING EXPERIENCE: Four-year starter and three-year captain at Central Michigan (1987-91).

POSTSEASON EXPERIENCE: Coach - 1997 NCAA Division II Tournament, 2004 NCAA Tournament, 2005 WNIT, 2006 WNIT, 2008 WNIT. 2009 NCAA Tournament.

MERCHANT'S YEAR-BY-YEAR HEAD COACHING RECORD

* Missed all but four games of 2006-07 while on maternity leave.