Following former head coach Dan Muscatell’s departure to the University of Oregon, assistant head coach Jamie Craighead was named the new interim head coach of the Sacramento State women’s basketball team.

Craighead said pure excitement was the only thing that came to mind when she heard the news.

“I was in Dr. Wanless’ office and he let me know the great news. We got to tell the team about 20 minutes later,” Craighead said.

Muscatell left the program in prime condition for Craighead with a team that has had its best conference record this season in its 12-year history with the Big Sky.

“I’m just really excited to continue in my mind what coach Muscatell started at Sacramento State,” Craighead said.

Craighead’s players are excited for the new possibilities now that Craighead is the one in charge.

“We were all very, very excited to hear the news. Now we’re back to focusing on next year and (to) do even better than last year,” sophomore guard Sami Field-Polisso said.

Craighead has moved up the coaching ranks quickly at Sac State. She was the top assistant coach during the 2007-08 season and was promoted to associate head coach during the 2008-09 season.

Before joining the Hornets, Craighead was an assistant coach at Portland State.

Prior to that, Craighead spent two seasons as an assistant at Division II powerhouse Seattle Pacific.

Craighead played Division I college basketball all four years at the University of Oregon, winning the Women’s National Invitation Tournament during her senior season in 2002.

She finished her career with the Ducks second on the school’s all-time 3-pointers made list (182) and seventh in field goal percentage (36.9 percent).

Craighead is known for her knowledge of working the post.

“We’ve got a great academic success rate with our APR. We will continue to recruit athletes who do well in the classroom, keep trying to get better on the court and make it to the Big Sky Conference Tournament,” Craighead said.

The hiring of Craighead brings some stability to the program, which is a relief to everyone involved in the program.

“We won’t lose a step. With someone new coming in you always risk having to develop a new system. With JC, she knows our system. She is behind the system and knows us all very well. We are going to continue to get better and continue to improve on how we did last year,” Field-Polisso said.

Craighead has some big immediate aspirations for her team.

“A Big Sky Conference Tournament championship will be the goal every year. With the success we had last year we are going to be right there next year,” Craighead said.

Andrew Hazard can be reached at [email protected]