STONY BROOK, N.Y. – Stony Brook women's basketball head coach Ashley Langford has announced the hiring of assistant coach Rena Wakama. 

"During my search for a new assistant coach, Rena quickly rose to the top. She brings a wealth of experience as a player and coach and knows the New York area well. Her fierce, competitive nature will immediately elevate our guard play and she is a relentless recruiter. I am excited that she is a part of our staff and the Stony Brook community," said coach Langford as she discussed Wakama joining the Seawolves' staff.

Wakama spent the previous six seasons at Manhattan College where she served as the Director of Basketball Operations for her first two seasons by handling the day-to-day operations of the program, including organizing team travel and overseeing student managers. Wakama also ran all fundraising events and assisted with the program's community service initiatives.

For the past four seasons, Wakama served the Jaspers as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator where she oversaw the development of the wing/guard position players, while also leading as the team's academics and community service liaison. 

Under the guidance of Wakama, the Jaspers earned a 21-11 record in the 2021-22 season, which were the most wins in a single season since their 2010-2011 season, and the team's third straight winning season, including a 14-6 record in MAAC play. She has mentored four MAAC Major Award winners, nine All-MAAC honorees and three MAAC All-Rookie Team recipients. Off the court, Wakama has helped 31 student-athletes earn MAAC All-Academic Team selections. 

Prior to her time with the Jaspers, Wakama was the assistant coach for the Carolina Flames AAU organization, the organization that she played for growing up. On June 30, the Nigeria Women's Basketball team, D'Tigress, the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF) announced the appointment of Coach Wakama as the new head coach. D'Tigress are the reigning African champions, having conquered the continent consecutively in 2017, 2019 and 2021. 

The native of Raleigh, NC, Wakama spent her collegiate career at Western Carolina University. The guard made 121 starts over her four-year career and received Second Team Southern Conference All-Tournament honors during her senior year after averaging 10.4 points per game. In the classroom, she was a three-time SoCon Academic Team honoree. During her high school career at Wake Forest Rolesville, Wakama was named Cap-7 Most Valuable Player, McDonalds High School All-American nominee, earned All-District First Team and All-State First Team honors. 

Wakama graduated from Western Carolina in 2014 with her bachelor's degree in therapeutic recreation and earned an MBA from Manhattan College in 2019.
 
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