Emily Wacker was named Assistant Coach for the Missouri Western Women’s Basketball program in the spring of 2019.
In her fourth year with the program, the Griffons finished the 2022-23 season with an impressive record of 24-7 overall and 18-4 in the MIAA, which included wins over multiple ranked teams throughout the season. The Griffons finished the MIAA regular season in 3rd place, the highest finish in six years.
The team boasted the talented Brionna Budgetts, who was awarded the MIAA Player of the Week title twice (Jan 24, 2023, and Feb 6, 2023) and was named First Team All-MIAA. Three other Griffons were awarded All-MIAA honors including Connie Clarke as the Defensive Player of the Year. Wacker serves as the primary guard coach for the program.
In 2021-22 Wacker helped lead the Griffons to a historic season reaching the Elite 8 for the first time in over two decades. Missouri Western finished 24-10 overall and 14-8 in the MIAA, including a fourth-place finish in the conference.
The Griffons notched multiple wins over nationally-ranked opponents including an NCAA Tournament first-round win over #10 Southwestern Oklahoma State and #4 Fort Hays State in the Central Regional Championship. The win over SWOSU set an NCAA record for the largest margin of victory by a #7 seed over a #2 seed. Wacker held primary scouting report responsibilities for both of those games.
With a consistently up-tempo style, the Griffons lead the MIAA in points per game with 74.2 and rebounds per game with 41.1. Three players brought home four All-MIAA awards including sophomore Connie Clarke receiving both 2nd Team All-MIAA and All-Defensive Team. Corbyn Cunningham and Brionna Budgetts received All-MIAA Honorable Mention.
Wacker was also a key part of Missouri Western’s 21-8 finish in 2019-2020. That team posted multiple wins over nationally ranked opponents including #10 Fort Hays State and #18 Central Missouri. Five Griffons earned All-MIAA honors during her first season, including All-MIAA First Team member Corbyn Cunningham.
A native of Salina, Kansas, Emily (Wood) Wacker was the Director of Basketball Operations for the Omaha Women’s Basketball team for one season prior to MWSU. After walking on at Nebraska, she earned a full-ride scholarship by her sophomore season and went on to become a four-year letter winner, earning the team’s Husker Award for two straight seasons. During her senior year, Wood led the Big Ten with a 48.1 percent three-point percentage in non-conference play. That same year, she was a team captain for a team that posted the nation’s largest win increase and qualified for the NCAA Tournament.
At Nebraska, Wacker received the Nebraska HERO Leadership Award four times and was twice a recipient of Nebraska’s Big Ten Sportsmanship Award. In 2018, she earned the prestigious Dr. Barbara Hibner Trailblazer Scholarship and was named Women’s Basketball Lifter of the Year.
In the Spring of 2018, Wacker participated in the WBCA’s “So You Want To Be A Coach” program at the Final Four in Columbus, Ohio.
Wacker received her B.S. in Business Administration in just three years from Nebraska in 2017 and went on to complete her Master’s in Business Administration from Nebraska in 2018. Emily Wacker is married to Ryan Wacker and the couple has two children, Avery and Bennett.
