LAS CRUCES, N.M. - New Mexico State Athletics Director Dr. McKinley Boston announced May 10 that Joann Cox has retired as head coach of the Aggie women's golf team effective June 30, 2006. New Mexico State men's golf coach Scott Lieberwirth will take over the day-to-day coaching duties for the team.
NMSU linkCox, who guided the Aggie program for the past nine seasons, quickly became one of the nation's premiere collegiate coaches as she built New Mexico State into a contender for conference titles year in and year out. In nearly a decade with the Aggies, she received conference coach of the year honors six times and in 2000 was named National Golf Coaches Association's (NGCA) National Coach of the Year, the first NMSU coach to receive the award.
In their first season as members of the WAC, coach Cox led the Aggies to eight top-10 finishes and a second place showing at the Western Athletic Conference Championships earlier this month. The Aggies also advanced to their 12th NCAA Regional appearance in the last 13 years last week and will play in the West Regional in Auburn, Wash. May 11-13. The Aggies finished the season with the second best scoring average in the conference at 76.00.
From 1997-2003, NMSU won seven-straight conference championships, seven conference individual championships and appeared in the NCAA West Regional 11 consecutive seasons. Cox has mentored five All-Americans, 34 all-conference selections, including junior Lehua Wise, who earned second team All-WAC accolades this spring.
The Aggies also excelled in the classroom under Cox. In nine years the NMSU women's golf team has had 17 academic All-conference honorees and 13 National Golf Coaches Association Scholar All-America team members.
In 2003, former Aggie and current LPGA member, Alena Sharp, became the first woman in program history to earn first team Academic All-America honors. A year earlier, Sharp was named third team Academic All-America. In 2004-05, current Aggie senior Devon Newell was named second team Academic All-District VI for her work in the classroom.
Last season, the team's final season as a member of the Sun Belt Conference, Cox guided the Aggies to a second place finish at the Sun Belt Conference Championships as four members of the squad took home all-conference honors.
In 2003-04 Cox guided a young Aggie squad to five top-10 finishes, including second-place finishes at the 2004 Bay Area Classic and the 2004 Sun Belt Conference Championships. Although as a team the Aggies lost in a playoff at the conference championships, sophomore Lehua Wise won the conference title, shooting second and third-round 73s for a total 222.
In 2002-03, Cox spearheaded another strong team toward a return trip to the NCAA Championships. Although the Aggies, as a team fell short, finishing tied for 11th in the NCAA West Regional Championships, Cox coached junior Alena Sharp to a tie for 22nd in the NCAA Championships. Cox and the Aggies also added their third-straight Sun Belt Conference Championship in 2003, including an individual championship for Alena Sharp. In 2001, Cox helped the Aggies an 11th place finish at the NCAA Championships.
During the 1999-2000 season, Cox skippered the team to its fourth consecutive Big West Conference Championship and fifth straight appearance in the NCAA Championships where the team had the best finish of any Aggie squad since the 1991 season. Along the way, the team finished in the top-10 in all eight regular season tournaments, and in the top-5 in four of those events.
During her time with the Aggies, coach Cox prided herself on her ability to attract quality students, as well as superior athletes. In the late 1990's two NMSU women's golfer were selected by the NCAA as its New Mexico Woman of the Year as LPGA veteran A.J. Eathorne earned the honor in 1998 and Australia native Rachel Duncan earned the honor for the 1999 season. Kate Dunn won the award in 2002. The award is designed to honor the most athletically, academically and socially well-rounded female student athlete from each state.
During her 17 years of experience as a head coach and an NMSU assistant coach under Jackie Booth and Paul Brilliant, Cox helped the Aggies to eight NCAA appearances and coached several players who have joined professional circuits such as Eathorne, Jane Egan, Lori Poling, Cece Studer and Jacque Vigil.
Cox was named head coach at New Mexico State on Aug. 26, 1997, becoming only the third individual to head the program.
In addition to working with the women's golf team, Cox also serves as an instructor in the College of Physical Education at NMSU. She also has her LPGA Class A license and serves as an assistant golf professional at the University Golf Course. Cox is a 1983 graduate of New Mexico State where she received her bachelor's degree in biology.