Women's Basketball
- Title:
- Assistant Coach/Director of Video & Scouting Operations
Mitch Vanya enters year four at Texas Tech as the Lady Raiders' Director of Video Scouting.
As part of his video coordinator duties, Vanya worked with Gerlich and Tech’s assistant coaches to cut up and present video content for pre-game scouting reports as well as player development. Â
In the 2024-25 season, Vanya coached the Lady Raiders to a 19-win season that saw the team reach the quarterfinals in both the Big 12 Tournament and the Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament (WBIT). Texas Tech earned its 1,000th win in program history after defeating Utah in the second round of the Big 12 Tournament. In doing so, the Lady Raiders would snap a 22-year drought since they last won two games at the conference tournament.
After the team’s run at the Big 12 Tournament, Tech was selected to the WBIT where they defeated 4-seeded Wyoming and overall No. 1 seed Virginia Tech to advance to the quarterfinals. Vanya aided the Lady Raiders to key wins over Washington State, Gonzaga, Colorado and Arkansas – the first time Texas Tech defeated the Razorbacks in Fayetteville in the program’s history. In addition, Vanya coached two All-Big 12 Honorable Mention selections in Jasmine Shavers and Bailey Maupin, who both scored more than 500 points in the season.
In the 2023-24 season, Vanya helped lead the team to back-to-back winning seasons after recording 17 victories on the year. Texas Tech had one of its best starts in program history – winning its first 11 games of the season. The Lady Raiders opened Big 12 play with a victory at Houston (79-71) then welcomed the Kansas Jayhawks to the United Supermarkets Arena for a 73-64 win. The Lady Raiders posted a ranked victory against No. 24 Iowa State, 71-63, a team who would make it to the Big 12 Tournament finals and the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
In the conference tournament, Tech pushed past Houston in dominant fashion – the team’s third victory over the Cougars in the season – to make it to the next round of the championships for the first time since 2018-19. In addition, Vanya coached two sophomore standouts in Bailey Maupin and Jasmine Shavers, who were both named to the All-Big 12 Honorable Mention team, to the 2023-24 Dave Campbell's All-Texas Women's Basketball Awards list and to the CSC Academic All-District Team. Shavers and Maupin led the Lady Raiders offensively as they totaled 15.4 and 14.1 points per game, respectively.Â
Vanya arrived in Lubbock after spending the 2021-22 as an assistant coach at Trevecca Nazarene in Tennessee.
Prior to arriving in Tennessee, the Texas A&M graduate served as an assistant coach at Stephen F. Austin for a pair of seasons.
Vanya was on staff at SFA as an assistant when the men’s basketball program pulled off an upset of No. 1 Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Nov. 26, 2019. While at SFA,Vanya helped lead the Lumberjacks to a 44-8 overall record and a Southland Conference Championship.
Vanya arrived at SFA after spending three years as an assistant coach with the Rockets. He assumed the role after being promoted from his position as head video coordinator.
In total, the Rockets made the NBA Playoffs in six of Vanya’s seven seasons, made a pair of trips to the West Conference Finals and recorded the most wins in a three-year span (2016-19) in franchise history.
Vanya began his career as the head men’s student manager at Texas A&M and assisted with the Aggies video department and equipment staff. While at A&M, the Aggies made four NCAA Tournament appearances.
The Texan is a two-time A&M graduate, earning his bachelors in sports management in 2009 and his masters in higher education administration in 2011.
Vanya and his wife Megan have two daughters, Mallory and McKinley, and one son, Micah.
