WHEELING — Joanna Bernabei-McNamee is poised to embark on her latest coaching mission.

The Weirton Madonna High graduate is in her first year as head coach of the University of Albany women’s basketball team. She comes to the NCAA D-1 program after a successful three-year stint at the University of Pikeville (Ky.).

She guided Pikeville to 63 wins and back-to-back national tournament berths, including a program-record 26 victories and an NAIA Final Four appearance in 2016. For those accomplishments, McNamee was named the 2016 Women’s Basketball Coaches Association NAIA Regional Coach of the Year.

McNamee inherits an Albany program that has won a combined nine America East Conference tournament and regular-season titles in the last five seasons. The Great Danes have also made five consecutive appearances in the NCAA Tournament. They defeated No. 5 Florida last spring for the program’s first-ever Division I NCAA Tournament victory.

The former West Liberty hoop great is just days away from her initial game as the Great Danes’ boss. Albany hosts New Paltz in a Nov. 6 home exhibition game.

“Transition from Pikeville to here has been smooth. I do miss my family and players at Pikeville,” McNamee said. “The biggest adjustment has been building trust between players and coaching staff. I have been fortunate enough to put together a tremendous staff.”

Top assistant Yolanda Griffith comes to Albany after serving as a UMass aide. She had a sparkling 11-year career in the WNBA. Griffith was a seven-time all-star and the league’s MVP in 1999 with the Sacramento Monarchs. She was a member of the league’s all-decade team and led the Monarchs to the 2005 WNBA title.

AJ Cohen also joins the Great Danes’ staff after serving as the Pikeville graduate assistant for the past two seasons.

Going from an NAIA school to a D-1 program obviously means a spike in the talent level.

“Our players at Albany are here all summer long for strength training and conditioning. So we are dealing with much more elite body types. That is a big difference between the programs,” McNamee said. “It is also nice to have more height. We are working skill wise so we can compete throughout the country.”

Albany is the pre-season pick to win the American East Conference. The Great Danes will be tested immediately, opening their regular-season campaign in the Kentucky Classic. Albany plays Kentucky Nov. 12 and Miami (Fl.) the next night.

“I am very optimistic about this team. We have a lot of different pieces but we lost three key contributors from last year,” McNamee noted. “When you take over a program, however, it is like having 13 freshmen. Everybody has to learn their new roles.

“Playing Kentucky and Miami right off the bat will enable us to get where we want to be as the season progresses,” she continued. “These are games that build character. If we make the NCAA Tournament again, they will be the type of teams we will be playing. I am looking forward to getting this season started.”

McNamee has scripted an impressive coaching resume following an All-American playing career at West Liberty. After being a graduate assistant at Eastern Kentucky, she became head coach at West Virginia Wesleyan before returning to EKU as a full-time assistant. The OVAC Hall-of-Famer left the Bluegrass State to become an assistant at West Virginia which proved a springboard to landing a position with Maryland.

McNamee and her husband Joe have two sons, Luke and Caden. She took a nearly four-year hiatus from coaching (2009-13) to focus on raising her children.

WLU TENNIS ACE

WEST LIBERTY’S Rhiannon James was named to the first team of the Mountain East Conference women’s tennis team this month. She was a second team all-MEC honoree as a frosh.

Her mother, Sharon (Spisich) James, is a Shadyside High grad. Rhiannon’s grandarents — Ed and Rena Spisich — still reside in Shadyside.

Rhiannon earned all-Ohion tennis honors at Dublin Jerome High School.

BUBBA’S BITS

ON FRIDAY, from 6-9 p.m., the championship games for the Martins Ferry Fire Department Flag Football League will be played under the lights at Purple Rider Stadium. This is the second year the fire department has operated the league and marks the first time that the youngsters have played under the lights. The league is for youths in grades K-6. With the assistance of athletic director Kim Appolloni and football coach Dave Bruney, the players will be announced as they come onto the field.

INDIAN CREEK has a new head girls’ basketball coach. She is Jacki Rossi who previously served in that same capacity at Steubenville Central.

BEAVER LOCAL product Derek Wolfe is enjoying another strong season for the Denver Broncos. The 6-5, 285-pound defensive end has registered 25 tackles and 4.5 sacks for the 5-2 Broncos.

NBA ROSTERS feature 113 international players, constituting 25 percent of the league.

THE LOUISIANA TECH football team is enjoying a successful season, winning six of nine starts. Tech is averaging more than 42 points a start with Bellaire High grad Todd Fitch serving as offensive coordinator. Skip Holtz is Tech’s head coach. Two of the losses have come at the hands of SEC foes: Arkansas and Texas Tech.

WE SEND out condolences and prayers to the family of Wilbur Coates who died Oct. 21. The 88-year-old Shadyside resident was one of the most respected and well-liked track officials in the Buckeye State, a duty he carried out for more than 40 years. He was the recipient of the OVAC Cal Giffin Track & Field Service Award to go with many more honors.

THERE HAVE BEEN many impressive football coaching jobs performed in the Ohio Valley this season. But it would be tough to find a better one done by Scott Holt and his Cameron staff. How many people would have predicted the Dragons to be 9-0 at this point? Holt, his coaches and players deserve much praise for their spotless achievement.