PORTLAND, Ore. --- Cheryl Sorenson, who played collegiately at the University of Washington and has eight years of coaching experience, has joined the Portland Pilots women’s basketball staff as an assistant coach, announced head coach Jim Sollars on Wednesday. A native of Milwaukie, Ore., and a graduate of Clackamas High School, Sorenson has spent the past four years as an assistant coach at Eastern Washington University.

 

“I’m very excited to be back in Portland and to have the opportunity to work with Coach Sollars and the Pilots,” Sorenson said. “Being a native of the Portland area, I have always admired the University of Portland and its strong tradition of excellence both on and off the court.”

 

“We are thrilled and very fortunate to have Cheryl join our staff,” said Sollars. “She brings extensive experience to our program, especially working with post players. As a Portland native and a graduate of UW, she also has an abundance of experience and knowledge recruiting in the Pacific Northwest, which is an area of emphasis for us. We expect her to fit in very well.”

 

While at Eastern Washington (2007-2011), Sorenson assisted in every aspect of the program. Sorenson spent time coaching both the posts and the guards, she was EWU’s recruiting coordinator and she helped lead the Eagles to the 2010 Big Sky regular season title. Under her tutelage, forward Julie Piper became the first player in school history to be named the Big Sky Most Valuable Player, while guard Brianne Ryan landed on the all-conference first team.

 

Prior to landing with the Eagles, Sorenson served as the head coach of the women’s team at Bellevue Community College (Wash.) for three seasons (2005-07). After winning just four games her first year, Sorenson led the Bulldogs to 22 wins the next season and to an impressive 26-5 record in 2007. Sorenson was named the NWAACC North Division’s Coach of the Year after the remarkable turnaround.

 

Prior to arriving at BCC, Sorenson served as the head coach of the girls’ team at Eastside Catholic High School, also located in Bellevue.

 

Sorenson graduated from Washington in 2003 with degrees in both communications and psychology. She was a wing for the Huskies and she was a team captain during her junior and senior campaigns. Sorenson helped lead UW to two NCAA Tournaments, including the 2001 Regional Final, and a pair of WNIT berths. She garnered Pac-10 All-Academic honorable mention accolades during her final season at the school.

 

While at Clackamas, Sorenson earned multiple All-American honors, while landing on the all-state first team and all-state tournament team two years in a row. Sorenson finished her prep career with 1,968 career points and she led the state of Oregon (24.8 ppg) in scoring during her junior campaign.