# Utah State Aggies women's basketball

The Utah State Aggies women’s basketball team represents Utah State University in NCAA Division I competition. The Aggies compete in the Mountain West Conference. They play their home games at the Smith Spectrum. As of the end of the 2023–24 regular season, the Aggies have an all-time record of 234 wins and 440 losses.

## History

The Aggies started play in the 1971-72 season as a member of the AIAW. They made the AIAW First Round in their first four years and the regionals in their final year of being in the AIAW during the 1981-82 season. Utah State joined the NCAA as an independent for the 1982-83 season where they would go on to only win 18 games in the last five years of the program's first run in basketball. The women's team was shuttered from 1988 to 2002. Utah State played in the Intermountain Athletic Conference from 1973 to 1982, played as an Independent from 1982 to 1984, the High Country Athletic Conference from 1984 to 1987, the Big West Conference from 2003 to 2005, and the Western Athletic Conference from 2006 to 2013 before joining the Mountain West Conference in 2014.
The Aggies have made appearances in the WNIT in 2011 and 2012, as well as the three appearances in WBI tournaments. The Aggies have won only a single conference title as a member of the AIAW, and as a result have never qualified for the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament.
In November 2019, Jerry Finkbeiner, in his eight season as head coach of the Aggies, stepped down for medical reasons. His three postseason tournament appearances are the most among Aggies head coaches all-time.
In March 2020, Southeastern Louisiana alum Kayla Ard was named as head coach. Under Ard, the Aggies amassed four consecutive losing seasons, including 26 losses in 2022–23, which is tied for the most losses by any Utah State women's basketball team in program history. Ard herself announced she was fired during the press conference of the 2024 Mountain West tournament game, following another 25-loss season.
| Season | Record | Conference Record | Coach |
| 1972–73 | 17–3 | n/a | Fern Gardner |
| 1973–74 | 12–2 | 8–0 | Fern Gardner |
| 1974–75 | 14–6 | 10–3 | Fern Gardner |
| 1975–76 | 12–9 | 10–3 | Fern Gardner |
| 1976–77 | 12–12 | 9–4 | Marilyn Weiss |
| 1977–78 | 9–14 | 8–5 | Marilyn Weiss |
| 1978–79 | 14–10 | 5–8 | Cindy Perkins |
| 1979–80 | 13–15 | 5–5 | Cindy Perkins |
| 1980–81 | 12–19 | 5–5 | Cindy Perkins |
| 1981–82 | 12–20 | 6–4 | Cindy Perkins |
| 1982–83 | 3–22 | n/a | Karen Logan |
| 1983–84 | 2–23 | n/a | Karen Logan |
| 1984–85 | 9–19 | 3–9 | Bob Corbin |
| 1985–86 | 3 - 25 | 0–12 | Bob Corbin |
| 1986–87 | 1–26 | 0–12 | Lloydene Searle |
| 2003–04 | 5–22 | 5–13 (10th) | Raegan Pebley |
| 2004–05 | 14–14 | 9–9 (6th) | Raegan Pebley |
| 2005–06 | 3–24 | 2–14 (9th) | Raegan Pebley |
| 2006–07 | 11–18 | 7–9 (6th) | Raegan Pebley |
| 2007–08 | 9–20 | 5–11 (7th) | Raegan Pebley |
| 2008–09 | 16–15 | 9–7 (5th) | Raegan Pebley |
| 2009–10 | 13–17 | 5–11 (7th) | Raegan Pebley |
| 2010–11 | 18–15 | 10–6 (3rd) | Raegan Pebley |
| 2011–12 | 21–10 | 11–3 (2nd) | Raegan Pebley |
| 2012–13 | 18–14 | 14–4 (2nd) | Jerry Finkbeiner |
| 2013–14 | 15–16 | 8–10 (8th) | Jerry Finkbeiner |
| 2014–15 | 8–23 | 5–13 (10th) | Jerry Finkbeiner |
| 2015–16 | 14–17 | 8–10 (7th) | Jerry Finkbeiner |
| 2016–17 | 17–15 | 9–9 (6th) | Jerry Finkbeiner |
| 2017–18 | 7–23 | 5–13 (T-8th) | Jerry Finkbeiner |
| 2018–19 | 17–16 | 10–9 (T-5th) | Jerry Finkbeiner |
| 2019–20 | 8–23 | 2–16 (11th) | Ben Finkbeiner (interim) |
| 2020–21 | 4–20 | 2–16 (10th) | Kayla Ard |
| 2021–22 | 11–19 | 5–13 (9th) | Kayla Ard |
| 2022–23 | 4–26 | 1–17 (11th) | Kayla Ard |
| 2023–24 | 5–25 | 2–16 (T-10th) | Kayla Ard |
| 2024–25 | 0–0 | 0–0 | Wesley Brooks |

## Postseason
### WNIT

The Aggies have appeared in two WNIT tournaments. Their combined record is 1–2.
| Year | Seed | Round | Opponent | Result |
| 2011 | –––– | First Round Second Round | Arizona BYU | W 103–95 L 102–63 |
| 2012 | –––– | First Round | Utah | L 69–58 |

### WBI

The Aggies have appeared in three Women's Basketball Invitational tournaments. Their combined record is 1–3.
| Year | Seed | Round | Opponent | Result |
| 2013 | #3 | First Round | South Dakota | L 77–69 |
| 2017 | –––– | First Round | Idaho | L 64–59 |
| 2019 | –––– | First Round Quarterfinals | UC Riverside North Texas | W 68–60 L 56–54 |

### AIAW Division I

The Aggies made four appearances in the AIAW Division I women's basketball tournament, with a combined record of 1–8.
| Year | Round | Opponent | Result |
| 1972 | First Round Consolation First Round Consolation Second Round | West Chester State Washington State Queens (NY) | L 45–79 W 40–37 L 57–65 |
| 1973 | First Round Consolation First Round | Stephen F. Austin UC Riverside | L 48–53 L 41–47 |
| 1974 | First Round Consolation First Round | William Penn Illinois State | L 34–54 L 46–74 |
| 1975 | First Round Consolation First Round | Tennessee Tech Federal City | L 45–91 L 34–89 |