NCSA Women's Basketball Recruiting Coaches

Nicole Scholl

CoachNScholl@ncsasports.org | 312-429-4781 | Moorhead State University

Growing up in a small town in North Dakota I decided to stay close to home attending Moorhead State University, an NAIA DI program in Moorhead, Minnesota. I really enjoyed my collegiate career playing 4 years of basketball and 2 years of fastpitch softball. I garnered NAIA Kodak All American Honorable Mention as a senior as well as All-Conference and All-District awards. After graduating college I went on to teach and coach girls’ basketball at Hastings High School, in Hastings, MN, winning a State Title in my second year. Coaching college WBB was my dream job so after three years at the high school level, I went on to North Dakota State University as a graduate assistant diving into the college game and getting my Master’s degree. From there I got a job as an assistant WBB Coach at Binghamton University in New York. My 15 years at Binghamton, working at a school that transitioned from Division III to DII and finally to DI, was an amazing experience. In my time as a head coach, I coached 2 America East Rookies of the year, 10 America East All-Conference selections and 2 America East All-Academic selections.

Playing and coaching women’s basketball has provided so many wonderful opportunities for me, but it wasn't until I got into college coaching that I realized fully the opportunities that are available to student-athletes when trying to find the right athletic/academic fit. Regardless of the level, there are so many incredible schools to play at and get a great education. Working at NCSA gives me the opportunity to pass on that knowledge to student-athletes and their families who otherwise might not realize what is out there and best practices to use to have a positive experience!

Chase Spreen

CoachCSpreen@ncsasports.org | 312-999-5367 | Lindsey Wilson College

In 2012, I graduated from Lindsey Wilson College, an NAIA Division I program, with a degree in business administration with an emphasis in management. As a junior and senior at Lindsey Wilson, I received All-American honors (honorable mention and second team) on the floor and was named an NAIA Scholar-Athlete as a senior, which is equivalent to Academic All-American Honors. Upon graduation, I signed a two-year contract to play professional basketball in Mackay, Queensland, Australia. As a member of the QBL (second league), the Mackay Meteors program served as a stepping stone to a lot of high-level international as well as American-born players. Over the course of my two seasons, I averaged 13 PPG, shooting 39 percent from the three-point line in my two seasons with Mackay.

After my stint in Australia, I served as an assistant coach for one season at my alma mater, Lindsey Wilson College. Serving as director of basketball operations, I was responsible for player development and organizing road trip accommodations, as well as day-to-day practice responsibilities. For the past two seasons, I have been a varsity assistant at the high school level on the women’s basketball side at my former high school, Bedford North Lawrence in Bedford, Indiana. My experience at NCSA has been second to nothing, and as a women’s basketball head recruiting coach, I am looking forward to expanding my role and helping young student-athletes each year reach their goals of playing college basketball.

Ashley Cieplicki

CoachACieplicki@ncsasports.org | Rowan University

I attended Rowan University and played Division III basketball, it was the best time of my life! I still communicate with my teammates today and that is why I love connecting student-athletes with their perfect school!

I went on to be a Division II and Division I assistant coach before becoming a Division III head coach. As a head coach, I was able to help our program win the first conference championship in school history!

I truly enjoy getting to know a student-athlete and their family during their recruiting process at NCSA! It can be such a fun time in your life! I also love the positive energy at NCSA, it motivates me every day!

When I am not working or watching basketball, I love being with my 2 dogs, Stella and Artie.

Jamal Branco

CoachJBranco@ncsasports.org | 312-638-4443 | Mayville State University

Growing up in the small town of Hudson Florida influenced me to go somewhere far away from home, to see new things, meet new people, and become my own person, which led me to Mayville State University, a small NAIA D1. The college experience of playing basketball for 4 years was everything an athlete could wish for and more. During my collegiate career, I was named an All-Conference player as a junior and senior along with receiving the Champion of Character award in the conference as a senior.

After graduating college, I jumped right into coaching as the Assistant Women’s Basketball Coach at Dakota State University in South Dakota, where my main responsibilities were recruiting, skill development, and program academic advising. While coaching full-time, I obtained my Master’s degree from Southwest Minnesota State University in Educational Leader/Community Learning. In my 5 year experience as the assistant coach at Dakota State University, I had the privilege of being part of various avenues of success both on and off the court. Coaching 3 Americans, 9 All-Conference players, highest team GPAs, breaking multiple school records (points in a season, steals in a season, 3pt FG%, total consecutive wins, total wins in a season), back-to-back conference championships, and back-to-back national tournament appearances. My 5 years at Dakota State University was an experience that I will never forget, one that has taught me more than I would have ever dreamt of.

Taking a step away from coaching but staying involved was something that I wanted not only for my family but for myself. NCSA has given me the opportunity to do that in every way, shape, and form. As a collegiate coach, I can confidently say that recruiting was my favorite part of the job. With recruiting constantly changing, helping student-athletes and families understand the changes, violations, scholarship opportunities, and just the overall recruiting process is something that I look forward to. Working at NCSA gives me every opportunity to share my knowledge with student-athletes and their families about the recruiting process, finding the best fit both academically and athletically while connecting with people and having a positive impact on your recruiting experience.

John Clark

CoachJClark@ncsasports.org | St. Gregory's University

I have been around the game of basketball in multiple capacities for the entirety of my life. My father was a basketball coach for over 25 years at the high school, collegiate, and professional levels. It was in this space where I learned to love the game of basketball. I have experience as both a player and a coach at the collegiate level. I played collegiately at an NAIA DI school, St. Gregory’s University from 2009-2014. For the past seven years, I have been coaching at the NCAA DI level in Women’s Basketball.

Most recently I was the Director of Video and Creative Content at the University of Alabama (19-21) where we made it to the 2nd Round of the NCAA Tournament in 2021. Prior to Alabama, I spent three years as an Assistant Coach at the University of the Incarnate Word (16-19), where I was one of the youngest assistant coaches in the country and helped the team win most conference games since transitioning to NCAA Division I in 2017. I began my coaching career as a Graduate Assistant at the University of Arkansas (14-16) where we made it to the 2nd Round of the NCAA Tournament in 2014.

My playing career is one that I would not replace, despite three ACL tears in my left knee. I went on to finish my career as a 3 Time NAIA Academic All-American, Top 20 in program history in Total Assists, 2014 NAIA Champion of Character Award recipient, and Team Captain my senior year for a team that made an NAIA Final Four Appearance.

What I love about NCSA is that I know we will work tirelessly for families and student-athletes to help them pursue and achieve their dreams of playing collegiate sports. There is nothing greater than seeing young people reach their goals and aspirations!

My wife Ashley and I reside in Edmond, Oklahoma with our daughter Charlee. Outside of hoops, I enjoy spending time with family, traveling, and golf.

Kaliann Rikard

CoachKRikard@ncsasports.org | Webster University

I was a four-year starter and team captain at Webster University in St. Louis, Missouri on the Women’s Basketball team. One of my favorite memories from playing was winning the conference tournament and going to the NCAA DIV III National Tournament. After graduating in 2014, I was a graduate assistant at William Woods University for two years. We made the NAIA National Tournament each year, including an Elite 8 appearance. After that, I returned to my alma mater Webster University, and coached for two years, also making a NCAA DIV III National Tournament appearance after winning the Conference Championship. After that, I coached for two years at Lake Forest College before joining NCSA.

I joined NCSA to be able to continue connecting with student-athletes and helping them find the right fit for college. I loved my time as a student-athlete and would love everyone to be able to have the same great experience that I had. I look forward to interacting with student-athletes and their families.

I reside in Oklahoma with my husband and our daughter.

Melissa Brooks

CoachMBrooks@ncsasports.org | 312-999-5328 | Holy Family University

I had the pleasure of growing up in the Philadelphia suburbs where most would say, Philly is the mecca center for College Basketball. I decided to stay in the area and attend a small Division II school, Holy Family University. I really enjoyed my collegiate career playing four years of basketball for a nationally ranked-team. During my four years with the Tigers, we accumulated a record of 116 wins and 13 losses with two conference championships and four trips to the NCAA tournament including a Sweet Sixteen birth. I was an All-Conference team member along with an NCAA Tournament team member. I was one of five players to record more than 1,000 points in that four-year span as well. After graduation, I landed a local boarding school assistant girls basketball coach position. I stayed there for two years before finding myself at the start of my college coaching journey. I made coaching stops at Marymount University, Washington College, and Stevens Institute. During my time at Stevens, we developed the Player of the Year and made it to the NCAA DIII Sweet Sixteen. From there I made my jump to Division I as an assistant at the United States Military Academy at West Point. After that, I landed my first head coaching job at Fairleigh Dickinson University at Florham and was able to bring in 15 recruits during my three years. I realized I had a passion for recruiting and finding the right fit for student-athletes. Besides the schools I had the pleasure of working at, there are so many amazing colleges and universities out there for each individual athlete. Working at NCSA gives me the opportunity to continue to help student-athletes and their families throughout one of the most important processes for these young athletes.