Coaches
Rachelle Sayers
Rachelle Sayers begins year number two as the head coach of the women’s basketball program with a new outlook and a new team for the 2012-13 season. After getting the job late last spring and suffering through numerous key injury’s to Carroll standouts such as Alysha Green and Amy Allen, the Saints went 13-16 overall and finished 5th place in the Frontier Conference. This past offseason the Saints reloaded. Rachelle added a number of fresh faces all over the court including two D-I transfers and some of the top high school talent in the northwest. When all was said and done Rachelle added nine new players to a talented group of underclassmen, which should make for an outstanding 2012-13 season.
Prior to her arrival her at Carroll in May of 2011, Rachelle spent the previous 14 seasons at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah including the last five as the associate head coach.
During her time at Weber State the Wildcats won a pair of Big Sky regular season titles and two Conference Tournament Championships to earn two trips to the NCAA National Tournament. As an assistant coach with the Wildcats, Rachelle oversaw recruiting as well as developed the guards and perimeter players.
Rachelle was a four-year standout at Weber State and a two-year starter from 1993-96, playing for Coach Carla Taylor. She led the Wildcats in scoring her junior year with 14.9 points per game and was named to the Big Sky All-Conference First Team. The second leading scorer her senior year (11.8 ppg), she helped lead the Wildcats to a second place finish at the Big Sky Championship and earned All-Conference honors for the second straight season. Rachelle is currently the 14th all-time leading scorer in Wildcat history with 1,009 career points. She ranks fifth in Weber State history in career three-pointers made with 149 and is ninth in school history in three-point percentage at .323. Rachelle was also a Big Sky Academic All-Conference selection for two years and the WSU team MVP in 1995.
Rachelle is a native of Absarokee, Montana. She graduated from Weber State in 1997 with a degree in English and in 2006 with a master’s degree in Business Administration from Regis University. Rachelle is married to Keith Sayers and together they are the proud parents of two daughters Keetyn, age 9, Taylor, age 6, and twin boys, Reddic and Rieker, who are 2.
Gary Turcott
Gary Turcott enters his second season on the bench as the women’s basketball assistant coach, but this will be his 21st year coaching at Carroll. Gary spent 19 years from 1990-2009 as the Head Coach for the men’s basketball team.
In his 19 years as the head coach for the men’s program, Gary qualified for the national tournament eight times including one trip to the Final Four. He amassed over 300 wins in his career and has the most wins for any coach in Carroll College history. His teams won the Frontier Conference Championship seven times and he was named “Conference Coach of the Year” five times. Of the school’s nine appearances in the national tournament, eight were under Gary’s watch. He was also inducted into the Carroll College Hall of Fame in 2011.
Gary’s primary responsibilities will be defensive coordination, post player development, recruiting, and opponent breakdown.
J.D. Solomon
J.D. is entering his tenth season as an assistant coach after a stellar career for the Fighting Saints men’s team. J.D. is the only NAIA first team All-American in Carroll College men’s basketball history. He helped lead the Fighting Saints to the 2001 Frontier Conference Championship and a berth in the NAIA National Tournament. Solomon was a three-time All-Conference selection and played professional basketball in Luxembourg for one season. Earlier this year J.D. was also inducted into the Carroll College Hall of Fame.
J.D. is directly responsible for the development of the post players, including 2nd Team NAIA All-American Amy Brooks, Frontier Conference MVP and 3rd Team All-American Emili Woody, and All-Frontier Tournament selection Sophi Forney. He is also responsible for film exchange, recruiting, post skill development, and travel preparation, recruiting, and summer camp organization.
J.D. is a 2001 graduate of Carroll College and majored in secondary education with a physical education minor. Originally from Billings, Montana, he is currently a teacher at Capital High School.
Julie Brown Petre
Julie enters her second season as a member of the women’s basketball staff. Julie, who is also a pharmacist at St. Peters Hospital, is very familiar with the hard wood. She was a member of the Montana State University basketball team from 1993-1997. During her time at MSU, she helped the Bobcats win the 1993 Big Sky Championship and also earn a birth in the National Tournament. Julie was also a 2-time All-Big Sky Conference honoree and a member of the Montana State Athletics Hall of Fame for her achievements.
Originally form Helena, Julie played her high school ball for Helena High. While with the Bengals she won two State Championships and was a 2-time All-State and 3-time All-Conference selection. She has been inducted into the Helena High School Sports Hall of Fame.
Julie’s primary responsibilities will be recruiting, perimeter player development, fundraising, and host family organization.
The Brown name should be familiar to Carroll fans as Julie’s brother Andy was a standout member on the men’s basketball team from 2000-2004. Julie is married to Chris Petre and together they have three sons; Colter, Cater, and Coll.
Jeni Guertin
Jeni, a 2012 graduate of Carroll College, will begin her first year on the staff for the Saints basketball program.
Jeni's primary responsibilities will be post development, community relations, and scouting.
Originally from Bozeman, MT, Jeni who attended Bozeman High was named All-Conference, All State, and Offensive Player of the Year as a junior while leading the Hawks to a State Championship. Her senior year she shot 80% from the free throw line and was named Offensive Player of the Year and a McDonalds All-American nominee, while also being named to the Montana/Wyoming Team