EPPERLY LEAVING LIMESTONE

Limestone College has announced that Athletics Director and Head Men’s Basketball Coach Larry Epperly is leaving the College. Epperly will join Head Coach Mack McCarthy’s men’s basketball coaching staff at NCAA Division I East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C.

“While we are obviously disappointed in losing Coach Epperly,” commented Limestone College President Dr. Walt Griffin, “we wish him every success at East Carolina. He has given Limestone College very dedicated service for ten years as a coach and five years as athletics director. The Limestone community appreciates all he has done for the basketball program, the athletics department, and the entire college.”

Epperly has served as the College’s Athletics Director for the past five years. He was an integral part of fundraising and increasing booster club membership for the Saints and Lady Saints teams, while overseeing Limestone’s successful athletics program.

As the head coach for the Saints’ men’s basketball team from 1997 to 2007, Epperly was instrumental in building Limestone’s men’s basketball program. Epperly guided the Saints to their best NCAA Division II season ever last year. The squad advanced to the Final Four of the conference tournament as the team posted its third consecutive winning season with a 20-9 record and finished fourth in the regular season conference standings. One of the highlights of the Saints’ season was an 83-80 upset over Barton College. Barton went on to win the 2006-07 NCAA Division II National Championship.

Epperly posted a 122-153 record at Limestone during a 10-year period. During his tenure, every player that finished his eligibility graduated from Limestone.

Epperly came to Limestone after a ten-year stint as the head coach at the University of South Carolina at Aiken where he also served as assistant athletic director. At USC-Aiken, Epperly experienced a great deal of success. In the 1992-1993 season he led the Pacers to the Peach Belt Conference regular season and tournament championships, finishing the year with a 22-7 record. His efforts that year earned him Peach Belt Coach of the Year honors.

Epperly spent a year on staff at Emory and Henry College as an assistant after finishing his playing career. He continued his coaching career as an assistant at Ohio University from 1978-1981. He served as an assistant at the University of Richmond from 1981-1985 under Head Coach Dick Tarrant, during which time he recruited NBA star Johnny Newman. At Richmond, Epperly was a part of a staff that won two Colonial Athletic Conference championships and had two appearances in the NIT and one NCAA Tournament appearance in which the Spiders advanced to the second round. Following his successful stay at Richmond, Epperly coached on the staffs of James Madison University and Virginia Commonwealth University.

He holds a bachelor of arts degree from Emory and Henry and a master of science in physical education from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

-LIMESTONE-