OKLAHOMA CITY – Mid-America Christian University Athletic Director Marcus Moeller is proud to announce that Kelsie Dutton has officially been promoted to Associate Head Coach of the MACU women's basketball program on Wednesday.
"We're excited to announce the promotion of Kelsie to Associate Head Coach, said Moeller. "I was fortunate enough to get to know Kelsie while recruiting her as a junior college student athlete. I then coached her for two years and now I've gotten to watch her grow into a tremendous college basketball coach. She genuinely loves the Lord, MACU and is a terrific leader of young women. This is a well-deserved promotion and I look forward to watching her continue to grow as a coach and leader."
"I am very excited for the opportunity and I want to thank Coach (Hannah) Moeller and A.D. Marcus Moeller," said Dutton. "Coach Moeller has been so much more than just a mentor and a boss. I am incredibly grateful for the confidence and trust she has for me in the program."
Dutton is being promoted after serving as the Assistant Coach of the MACU women's basketball team for the last four seasons alongside Head Coach Hannah Moeller. In the last four campaigns, the Evangels have accumulated a 93-44 record, including winning 20 or more games in all four seasons. MACU was also the back-to-back National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) Division I National Champions in 2018 and 2019.
"I am really excited to honor Kelsie with this promotion," said Hannah Moeller. "She has grown so much over the past four years and is a huge reason for our success. I trust her with every aspect of the program and she is a terrific role model for the young women in our family. Her loyalty to the program, MACU and myself has been a true gift. Our program simply would not be the same if not for her servant leadership and willing sacrifice. This promotion is a no brainer and I am incredibly excited for her."
MACU finished the 2019-20 season with a 21-11 record and qualified for the NCCAA National Championship Tournament for the fourth straight year, however the Evangels didn't get the opportunity to compete for a third straight national championship after the tourney was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Evangels went 12-8 in Sooner Athletic Conference play, finishing fourth in the league standings for the fourth consecutive year.
During her tenure as Assistant Coach, Dutton has coached three NCCAA All-Americans, including three-time First Team honoree Alexis Shannon, a Third Team honoree in Shaylan Coleman and the 2016-17 NCCAA Player of the Year, Sarai Rodriguez.
After serving as the Graduate Assistant Coach of the NCAA Division II Southern Nazarene women's basketball team for the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons, Dutton made her return to the MACU women's basketball program to join Coach Moeller in her first tilt at the helm of the program, arriving at MACU after a highly successful career as the Head Coach of Hillsdale College (now Randall University).
The Anton, Texas native and MACU graduate competed for the Evangels between 2012-14. In her two seasons with MACU, Dutton competed in 57 games, averaging 3.3 points per game while shooting 44.6 percent from the field as well as 78.1 percent from the free throw line while ripping down 3.6 rebounds per game and recording 33 steals during her Evangels career.
Dutton helped lead a resurgence within the MACU basketball program during her senior season as the Evangels closed out the campaign with an 18-14 record, notching the team's first winning season since the 2006-07 team went 22-11 and defeated Dallas Christian in the consolation game at the NCCAA National Championships.
"While it was disappointing that we didn't get the opportunity to compete for a third straight NCCAA National Championship this year, I'm optimistic we can get back there," said Dutton. "I am ready to get back to work and continue to build upon our past successes."
