Michigan assistant coaches Batth, Nainima and graduate manager Frost leave for Providence

Monday afternoon, Providence College Athletics announced that Michigan women’s basketball assistant coach Valerie Nainima and graduate manager Reyna Frost were both hired by the Friars, following assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Erin Batth’s appointment as head coach of the program March 20.

“Thrilled for Erin to have the opportunity to lead her own program,” Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico wrote in a statement to The Michigan Daily. “She had aspirations to be a head coach and spending a year at Michigan afforded her that. It’s a great opportunity for Val to be a recruiting coordinator and gain another experience of building a program. Reyna brought so much during her time at Michigan and it’s amazing that she has gotten her first coaching job. We wish them the best as they continue their careers with Erin.”

Batth had 17 years of Division-I coaching experience, the last of which she served with the Wolverines. Batth worked primarily with the forwards, including first-time first team All-Big Ten graduate forward Emily Kiser. She spent four years at NC State as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator, the same position she held at Michigan.

“I am humbled and excited to lead Providence College women’s basketball,” Batth said in a Providence statement. “I want to thank Steve Napolillo, Jill LaPoint and the rest of the Providence Friar family for this opportunity. I’m thrilled to be a Friar and confident that we will build a program that the community is proud of and excited to support. The sky is the limit on what can be accomplished at Providence.”

Joining Batth with the Friars, Nainima was an assistant for Michigan the past two seasons, in charge of coaching the point guards. This season, when the Wolverines entered the season without a true point guard, she helped direct fifth-year wing Leigha Brown in the role, where Brown earned first team All-Big Ten and honorable mention All-American citations and finished the season just four assists shy of the program’s single-season assists record.

“… Val is a proven coach who has the drive and desire to win in everything she does,” Batth said in a statement released by Providence. “She has over a decade of coaching experience and has helped lead her teams to multiple NCAA Tournament appearances. Not only will Val bring a wealth of coaching knowledge, she also will draw from her playing experiences at the NCAA Division I and professional level.”

Nainima takes that experience and knowledge and will continue to apply it in her first position as the top assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for the Friars, the position that Batth occupied at Michigan this season.

Rounding out the trio of exits, Frost was a graduate assistant for the Wolverines the past two seasons, and earned her first official coaching position with the Friars.

“… (Frost’s) role as a graduate manager at the University of Michigan exposed her to all aspects of college coaching,” Batth said in a statement released by Providence. “She gained valuable experience in individual workouts and skill development, scouting and on- and off-campus recruiting, playing a significant role in Michigan’s success. We both value the importance of relationships and the overall well-being of student athletes. Reyna is a rising star and is an amazing role model.”

While the three new assistant coaches for the Friars undoubtedly speak to Barnes Arico’s ability to develop coaches and grow her already-large coaching tree, their departures prompt questioning how the Wolverines will stack up next season on the court and this summer off-court with recruiting. With only one coach — assistant coach Harry Rafferty — officially on staff, it is a waiting game to see who replaces Batth, Nainima and Frost.