Daynia La-Force’s seventh season at the helm of the Huskies in 2012-13 proved to ber her most successful yet, leading Northeastern to 17 wins, the team’s most since 1999-00, and a program-record 11 home wins, including a seven-game unbeaten streak at Solomon Court spanning from Nov. 20 to Jan. 10. The Huskies finished fifth in the CAA with a 17-12 (10-8 CAA) record, their most conference wins since joining the CAA in 2005-06. La-Force was named CAA Coach of the Year on March 13 after helping Northeastern to a nine-win improvement from 2011-12 - the best mark in the CAA.
For the fifth time in six years in 2011-12, La-Force guided the Huskies to a higher finish than their preseason prediction, as Northeastern finished 8-22 (6-12 CAA) for a 10th place finish in the conference. The Huskies closed out their regular season with a flurry, winning four of five including victories over two of the top three teams in the league.
Northeastern finished the 2009-10 season with a 13-18 record and 7-11 mark in CAA play for an eighth place finish, two spots above its predicted 10th place finish in the CAA pre-season poll. The Huskies implemented a new dribble drive offense which saw a new exciting brand of basketball being played on Huntington Avenue.
La-Force guided the Huskies to their best start since the 1998-99 season while gaining many contributions from numerous players throughout the season as 11 of 12 players reached their career-highs in scoring and seven different Huskies led the team in scoring on a team that featured nine underclassmen.
2008-09 saw the Huskies graduate two of the team's top scorers and top rebounder. La-Force Mann brought in seven highly talented freshmen to go along with four sophomore, two juniors and one senior roster.
La-Force took a young Northeastern squad and molded them to a feared competitors throughout the season. The Huskies finished 12-19 overall and 8-10 in the CAA good for sixth place in the conference despite being picked to finish ninth in the pre-season polls. La-Force Mann also led NU to it's second consecutive CAA Tournament quarterfinals appearance.
In 2007-08 La-Force guided the Huskies to their most successful season in years, leading Northeastern to a 10-win improvement from 2006-07, the biggest turnaround in the CAA. The Huskies also won five more CAA games than in 2006-07, the second biggest turnaround in conference only games.
La-Force had the Huskies playing their best basketball as 2007-08 wound down. She lead Northeastern to seven straight wins, punctuated by a 78-46 win over George Mason in the first round of the CAA Tournament. The seven game winning streak is tied for the second longest winning streak in program history.
Introduced as the fifth head coach in the program’s history on April 14, 2006, La-Force has enjoyed a rapid and successful rise up the NCAA coaching ranks. In a short period of time, the New York native has had a tremendously positive impact at Northeastern, as she has the Huskies poised to become a perennial contender in the CAA. To that end, her 2007 recruiting class was ranked in the top 150 in the nation by the All-Star Girls Report. Her 2008 recruiting class features five All-State performers.
Prior to coming to Northeastern, La-Force spent a highly successful 2005-06 season at the University of New Haven, where she was named the New York Collegiate Athletic Conference Coach of the Year, as she guided the Chargers to the NYCAC regular season and tournament titles. Her Chargers finished the 2005-06 season with a 17-3 conference record and a 24-7 overall record, and advanced to the Women’
s Division II NCAA Tournament. She also coached the NYCAC Player of the Year and helped her team achieve a grade point average over 3.0. Shortly after completing the season, La-Force Mann was tabbed to helm the Huskies’ program.
Prior to her arrival at New Haven, La-Force spent three seasons as an assistant coach at St. John’s University from 2002-05. She was promoted to the top assistant post for the 2004-05 season and helped take the Red Storm to a 20-win season and the second round of the Women’s National Invitation Tournament, the team’s first postseason appearance in 20 years. La-Force Mann was active as the team’s recruiting coordinator, academic advisor and NCAA compliance liaison.
La-Force also spent seven seasons as an assistant coach at Long Island University from 1995-2002. She was a member of the staff that turned around a program ranked last in RPI nationally in 1995 and lifted them to the Northeast Conference championship and NCAA Tournament in 2001. Coupled with the program’s success on the court, the team also achieved in the classroom year after year, regularly securing a team grade point average above 3.0.
A 1995 graduate of Georgetown University, La-Force received her bachelor of science degree in Psychology. While at Georgetown, La-Force Mann was a standout member of the women’s basketball team, highlighted by the Hoyas’ 1992-93 season in which they won the Big East Conference championship and advanced to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.
La-Force is an active member of the National Women’s Basketball Coaches Association and the Black Coaches Association. She received her master’s degree in School Psychology from LIU in 2001.
La-Force lives in Lowell with her two sons, Terance and Martin.
Daynia La-Force Year-by-Year Record
|
Year |
School |
Overall |
Pct. |
Conf. (finish) |
Pct. |
Postseason |
|
2005-06 |
New Haven |
24-7 |
.774 |
17-3 (1st) |
.850 |
Division II NCAA Tournament |
|
2006-07 |
Northeastern |
4-26 |
.133 |
3-15 (11th) |
.166 |
CAA first round |
|
2007-08 |
Northeastern |
14-16 |
.466 |
8-10 (6th) |
.444 |
CAA quarterfinals |
|
2008-09 |
Northeastern |
12-19 |
.387 |
8-10 (6th) |
.444 |
CAA quarterfinals |
|
2009-10 |
Northeastern |
13-18 |
.419 |
7-11 (8th) |
.388 |
CAA quarterfinals |
|
2010-11 |
Northeastern |
8-22 |
.267 |
3-15 (10th) |
.200 |
CAA first round |
|
2011-12 |
Northeastern |
8-22 |
.267 |
6-12 (10th) |
.333 |
CAA first round |
|
2012-13 |
Northeastern |
17-13 |
.567 |
10-8 (5th) |
.556 |
CAA quarterfinals |
|
TOTAL |
|
100-143 |
.412 |
62-84 |
.425 |
|
|
NU Only |
|
76-136 |
.358 |
45-81 |
.357 |
|
