MORGANTOWN — In the end, Wren Baker’s search for a WVU women’s head basketball coach took him to a familiar face.
The WVU athletic director announced Monday that Mark Kellogg will become the school’s seventh women’s head coach, taking over for Dawn Plitzuweit.
“Mark Kellogg is an established winner who has made a name for himself by building championship programs and preparing his student-athletes to be leaders on and off the court,” Baker said in a press release. “He has had tremendous success at every stop along his coaching career journey and has done so with great integrity.”
The school will hold a press conference at 1 p.m. Wednesday at the WVU Coliseum to introduce Kellogg.
The pair’s relationship goes back to 2012, when Baker was the athletic director at Division II Northwest Missouri State and he hired Kellogg as the Bearcats’ women’s coach.
“What became clear to our search committee was that Mark possesses the work ethic, passion and character traits that will resonate with all West Virginians and the student-athletes in our women’s basketball program,” Baker said. “Mark and his wife, Trisha, along with their children Camden and Kayli, will make outstanding additions to our community, campus and state.”
Kellogg spent just one season with the Bearcats and has since grown into a successful coach at Stephen F. Austin over the last eight years.
Under Kellogg’s direction, the Lumberjacks averaged 24 victories per season and played in two NCAA tournaments.
Stephen F. Austin finished 27-7 this season and advanced to the second round of the WNIT, before being eliminated by Arkansas.
“We are thrilled to join the Mountaineer family and are excited to get to Morgantown,” Kellogg said. “I want to thank President Gordon Gee and Wren Baker for the opportunity to continue the tradition of West Virginia women’s basketball. We will work tirelessly every day to build a program that competes for championships with quality student-athletes who will make all of West Virginia proud.”
Kellogg will take over a team that finished 19-12 under Plitzuweit and lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament against Arizona.
WVU could return as many as four starters and nine scholarship players next season, although the transfer-portal window is open until mid-May.
The biggest question early on for Kellogg’s roster management is the status of guard J.J. Quinerly, who established herself as an all-Big 12 player this season at WVU, after averaging 14.5 points and 4.2 rebounds per game as a sophomore.
Plitzuweit was at WVU for just one season, after she took over for longtime coach Mike Carey in 2022. Following the loss against Arizona, Plitzuweit left to become the head coach at Minnesota.
Kellogg’s contract details will be made available at Wednesday’s press conference, according to a school spokesperson.
Plitzuweit’s deal was for five years and worth $3 million.
Kellogg’s coaching career also includes stops at Division II’s Fort Lewis (Colo.) College and West Texas A&M.
In 18 seasons as a head coach, Kellogg’s career record is 445-120.
He twice coached in the Division II title game, at Fort Lewis College in 2010, and at West Texas A&M in 2014.
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