Armstrong Atlantic State athletic director Lisa Sweany had plenty of worthy candidates in her search for a new women’s basketball coach.
But Fala Bullock stood out with her NCAA Division II experience as a player and coach and her familiarity with the Peach Belt Conference.
Bullock, a native of Southern California, played at Irvine Valley Junior College for two years before signing with Northeastern State University, a Division II program in Oklahoma.
For the last two seasons, Bullock was the head coach at Central Georgia Technical College, a junior college program in Macon. Prior to that, she served as an assistant coach at Columbus State, a Peach Belt Conference rival of Armstrong, for two seasons.
“Fala has been around Division II as a player and a coach and that meant a lot to us because Division II is the heart and soul of what we are all about here,” Sweany said. “And Fala is no stranger to the Peach Belt Conference, she has the experience and that was important to us. She’ll have some tricks up her sleeve on how to play against conference opponents.”
Bullock, 32, was a point guard in her playing days. She said her teams play a blue collar style of basketball.
“We don’t do any frilly stuff,” Bullock said. “I like to get the right kids — hard workers who like to play defense.”
At Central Georgia Tech, Bullock’s team finished 13-16 in her first year, and improved to 25-6 last season as the team advanced to the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association championships.
Bullock said she will have a close relationship with her guards.
“That’s definitely going to be personal for me — I feel like our point guard will be a direct extension of me,” Bullock said. “I want them to be like player/coaches on the floor.”
Bullock takes over for Matt Schmidt, who left Armstrong to take a job at Duquesne. Schmidt compiled a 60-73 record over five years, including a 13-14 mark last season.
Bullock said she is excited to get started and is looking forward to working with senior forward Mauri Wells, who averaged 8.7 points and a team-high 9.7 rebounds while earning all-conference honors last season.
“I think she will set the tone for our offense,” Bullock said. “We’re going to rely heavily on our defense to get our transition offense going.”
Bullock said being close to the ocean was a big selling point for her, being from California. She and her husband, Dermayne Bullock, who also played Division II college ball, have already been out to Tybee Island.
“This is a great opportunity for me to come back to one of the best basketball conferences in the nation,” Bullock said. “The Peach Belt Conference always has several teams in the top 25. My husband and I don’t have a family yet, so the girls on the team are going to be near and dear to our hearts. We’re going to take a family approach with the team.”