LCCC declines to renew contract of women's hoops coach Ayana McWilliams

Apr. 12—CHEYENNE — The Laramie County Community College women's basketball team will have a new head coach the next time it takes the court in November.

The school decided not to renew coach Ayana McWilliams' contract when it expires June 30. McWilliams declined comment when reached by phone Friday morning because she is technically still an LCCC employee. Coaching women's basketball was the only role McWilliams had at the college, however.

The Golden Eagles won 57.7% of their games (52-38) during McWilliams' three-year tenure. They reached the Region IX semifinals in her first two seasons and posted a 23-8 record during the 2022-23 campaign.

LCCC went 11-18 this past season.

Athletics director Mark Puev said LCCC policy prohibits him from commenting on personnel matters, which is why he can't provide specifics about what contributed to McWilliams' termination. He also declined to say whether she was informed she wasn't coming back immediately after the season concluded or whether that happened recently.

"We appreciate everything she did here, and we've decided to go another direction," Puev said.

The women's basketball coaching job hadn't been posted on the human resources section of LCCC's website late Friday afternoon. Puev didn't have a timeline for when McWilliams' replacement might be in place.

"I'd love to get this solved as soon as possible, just to give some sort of answer to the players," Puev said. "It's something everybody wants to know. We're in an important part of the year for recruiting.

"This is the sweet spot for that, so you don't want anything hanging out there. ... The school is a great place to be, and we'll sell it to the candidates."

Jeremiah Johnke is the WyoSports editor. He can be reached at jjohnke@wyosports.net or 307-633-3137. Follow him on X at @jjohnke.