The Illinois Springfield women's basketball program announced the hiring of Carissa Spiker as its new Assistant Coach. Spiker earned a Bachelor's degree in Marketing from Young Harris College, and a Bachelor's degree in Accounting from Alderson Broaddus. She also competed on the basketball team at each school. 

Coach Summer Quesenberry had to say this about her hiring, "I am absolutely thrilled to welcome one of my former players to our bench! I believe that Coach Riss will be a great asset to our program. Carissa was beginning her senior year at Alderson Broaddus University when I inherited the program. With the aid of Carissa and the buy-in of her teammates we were able to progress the program forward in dramatic fashion; overcoming a thirty year drought of post-season play. I believe Carissa's resilient mindset and dedication will impact our program and raise the level of competition immediately. I am excited to welcome her to my staff as I am certain she will assist us in creating a culture of competitive excellence!

Formerly, Carissa served in many professional roles. Her diverse experience will empower her as she will lead the program's efforts in: player development both on the court and off, travel logistics, social media engagement and the organization of our recruitment efforts.

I believe her previous experience will absolutely serve her well as she progresses into her role at UIS. Carissa is extremely passionate about the sport of women's basketball and she will be a great ambassador for our University and women's basketball program!"

Coach Spiker expressed her excitement for joining the staff at UIS, "I believe having previous experience playing for Coach Q, rising to her standards and holding her values in high regard will allow us to work in tandem. I look forward to working along with Coach Q in making strides to bring success to such a young program! I will compliment her old school values and new school approach to empowering our student-athletes. I'm looking forward to building a program alongside Coach Q at UIS! Go Prairie Stars!"

The women's basketball team begins their season on November 10 at the Purdue Northwest Crossover against Tiffin University.