New Head Basketball Coach Excelled as Player

Mary Baldwin University has tapped Nikki Maples, a former assistant coach from Reinhardt University in Waleska, Georgia, as the Fighting Squirrels’ new head basketball coach.

“I feel Mary Baldwin is the perfect opportunity for me to begin my career as a head coach,” Maples said. “One of my goals is to motivate my student athletes both on and off the court. I plan to get the most out of my players on the court while also holding them to Mary Baldwin’s strong academic standards.”

Maples spent the past four seasons as Reinhardt’s assistant coach, aiding in day-to-day operations, managing film exchange and travel arrangements, organizing fundraisers, and working individually with both posts and guards. She also brought in top recruits who received all-freshman team and all-conference team awards, along with many players earning all-academic team honors. In the 2012–13 season Maples led Reinhardt to the conference tournament championship in the Appalachian Athletic Conference. The win earned the university an automatic bid to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics National Tournament.

Maples was a four-year letter winner as a point guard at NCAA Division III Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia, and helped the Scotties finish in the top three in the conference every season during her tenure. As a senior she started all 24 games, averaging 10.1 points and 3.4 rebounds per game while leading the Scotties in assists (116, 4.8 per game) and free throw percentage (82.4 percent, 84-of-102). She left as the school’s career leader in free throw percentage and three-point field goal percentage and also holds single-season records for assists and free throw percentage. An all-around student-athlete, Maples also played softball and volleyball for the Scotties.

Maples received her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Agnes Scott in 2009 and her master’s degree in kinesiology from Georgia Southern University in 2011.

“Coach Maples is a good fit for Mary Baldwin. She has a passion for the game, and has been part of a winning program,” said Mary Baldwin Athletic Director Sharon Spalding. “More importantly, she sees the value of her own women’s college education at Agnes Scott and how it was a benefit to her life. I see Coach Maples bringing Mary Baldwin to a more competitive place in the USA South as the new leader of our basketball program.”