Betsy Yonkman enters her 11th season and fifth-straight as a member of Rutgers women’s basketball staff. This is the second stint in Piscataway for Yonkman, who currently serves as assistant to the head coach and oversees scouting and video for the team.
Prior to returning to Rutgers, Yonkman spent the 2005-06 season as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of San Francisco.
Before traveling to the west coast, Yonkman served as the associate head coach at Missouri for four seasons from 2001-05. She helped lead the Tigers to three-consecutive postseason appearances, capped by an NCAA berth in 2004. In addition, Yonkman coached four future WNBA draft choices.
Yonkman first joined the Rutgers coaching staff in 1995, the first season under head coach C. Vivian Stringer. She went on to serve as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator with the Scarlet Knights from 1995-01. Rutgers women’s basketball compiled a 124-64 record during her tenure and advanced to four-consecutive NCAA berths, including a Sweet Sixteen showing in 1998, an Elite Eight nod in 1999 and a Final Four appearance in 2000.
Yonkman began her collegiate coaching career at Eastern Michigan and spent four seasons in Ypsilanti before returning to her alma mater, Central Michigan in 1991. Yonkman worked four seasons with the Chippewas, serving as the recruiting coordinator. A four-year letterwinner at CMU, Yonkman was a team captain and led the Chippewas to a pair of MAC Championships (1984, 1985), MAC Tournament titles and NCAA berths (1983, 1984).
Yonkman litters the CMU record books in multiple categories and was a two-time All-Mid-American Conference First Team selection. Yonkman was one of just three players in CMU history to earn all-league honors more than once. She led CMU in scoring two seasons, averaging 16.3 points each year. On the all--time program list, Yonkman ranks fourth in scoring (1,495 points) and 10th in rebounds (734).
With over 20 years of coaching experience, Yonkman was inducted into the Central Michigan Athletic Hall of Fame in October 2007. In 2008, she was selected as one of the Top-35 athletes ever to compete - in all sports played in Rose Arena at CMU.
A graduate of Central Michigan, Yonkman earned a degree in education in 1986 and received a Master of Science from Eastern Michigan in 1990.
