Frank Howell
Graceland women’s basketball coach Frank Howell says his team is looking forward to the challenge of playing a Division one foe. The Yellowjackets visit Nebraska-Omaha on Thursday night and Howell says his connection to Mavericks assistant coach Kirk Walker helped make this game possible.
“Kirk used to coach at Sioux City North and I used to coach at Cedar Rapids Washington”, said Howell. “In fact we even go further back then that. He coached at Galva-Holstein while I coached at Audubon in high school so we have known each other for a long time.”
Howell says not only will the money earned help fund the program but it also counts as an exhibition game for Graceland. It counts as a regular season game for UNO.
“It is a great opportunity for our players to go in and soak in the venue of Baxter Arena”, added Howell. “It is kind of a win-win for us.”
It is not the first time Graceland has challenged a division one opponent. The Yellowjackets lost at UNO a year ago and also played a Western Illinois team that eventually made it to the NCAA Tournament.