Martinez Retires as Head Coach of TU Women’s Basketball
UPLAND, Ind. – Taylor University’s Director of Intercollegiate Athletics, Kyle Gould, announced on Wednesday that Jody Martinez had decided to retire from coaching after six seasons with the TU women’s basketball program.
“After 25 years of coaching collegiate women’s basketball, I have decided it is time to retire,” said Martinez. “I want to thank the administration for their support during my time at Taylor. Special thanks to Kyle Gould for believing in me and supporting me these past six years. More thanks goes to my two assistant coaches that I had, Natalie Young and Cassidy Wyse. To all the current and former players, thank you for your efforts and for allowing me to coach you. Thanks to the Taylor community of supporters and donors to the program. Finally, there are not enough words of appreciation and love for my wife, Sonya, and our daughters, Hannah and Josalyn, for their years of sacrifice during my coaching career. Sonya has made such an impact on the players’ lives, and I hope that will always be remembered.”
Martinez retires with a record of 542 wins to just 238 defeats in 23 seasons as a head coach and with a mark of 133 wins to 54 losses in six years at Taylor. His 542 wins ranked Martinez eighth in the NAIA among active coaches. Among his many career highlights are 12 coach-of-the-year awards, 18 seasons of at least 20 wins, 11 NAIA National Tournament appearances and six trips to the Round of Eight.
In six seasons at the helm of the Trojan program, Martinez guided his teams to a trio of NAIA National Tournaments, the program’s second-ever Round of Eight appearance, a regular season and tournament Crossroads League Championship, two 30-win campaigns and six winning seasons.
Other highlights included being named the 2018-2019 WBCA NAIA National Coach of the Year, winning a program-record 97 games over a four-year span and climbing as high as No. 5 in the national polls.
“Jody served as our women’s basketball coach during some of the most exciting and successful times in program history,” said Gould. “We are thankful for his positive contributions to the program, the athletic department and the larger campus community. We wish him and his family nothing but the best in the next phase of his career.”
A national search for the next head coach of Taylor women’s basketball will begin immediately.