Chad Lavin - Inducted 2024

CHAD LAVIN, a 1974 Clear Lake and 1978 USD graduate, is one of the earliest South Dakotans to coach women’s basketball at the NCAA Division I level, Lavin turned around the University of Wyoming program. The Cowgirls went 175-162 from 1986-98 with Lavin at the helm, while the Cowgirls were 23-60 the three years before he took over. Lavin was a two-time conference coach of the year who led the Cowgirls to one national tourney appearance as well as a conference championship (as of 2023, still the only regular-season conference title in the history of the Cowgirls’ program). Lavin recruited and coached UW hall of famers Amy Burnett (Huron) and Courtney Stapp (Newell). Lavin also had a major influence on girls’ basketball in the state of Wyoming, conducting numerous coaching clinics in Laramie and around the state, as well as girls’ basketball camps, which grew to 2,000 players and 120 teams participating. Lavin also had two stints as coach at USD (273 total wins), going 82-32 with three North Central Conference titles from 1982-86 and 191-107 with two NCC titles from 1998-2008. In his final season, USD was 33-2, losing in the NCAA Division II national finals. (USD was 17-64 the three seasons before he took over in 1998). A four-time North Central Conference coach of the year who led USD to seven national DII tourney appearances. In 2012, Lavin was lured out of retirement by Colorado State (and former USD) head coach Ryun Williams to serve first as a CSU assistant coach for three years and then as the CSU director of women’s basketball administration for six more seasons after that through the 2021 season. Lavin, a multi-sport star in high school, played basketball at USD, where he was a three-year letterman. He coached the Dell Rapids High School boys’ basketball team for a couple of seasons, as well as serving as the men’s assistant at Mount Marty. Member of the Wyoming and USD halls of fame.