The University of Minnesota announced they have named Dawn Plitzuweit as the new head coach of women’s basketball on Saturday.

The announcement came after former head coach Lindsey Whalen stepped down at the beginning of March.

Plitzuweit and the University agreed to a six-year term, according to a press release from the Gopher athletic department.

Plitzuweit has 28 years of coaching experience, serving as a head coach for 16 of those years. She has worked as head coach in multiple Division I basketball programs, including West Virginia, South Dakota and Northern Kentucky.

She led South Dakota and West Virginia to the NCAA tournament, pushing South Dakota to the Sweet 16 in 2022. Plitzuweit also has experience coaching at Wisconsin and Michigan, where she recruited Minnesota players.

“I am extremely excited,” said Plitzuweit. “It is a tremendous honor to be named head coach at Minnesota, and I want to thank President Joan Gabel, Mark Coyle, Julie Manning, Joi Thomas and the entire search committee for this opportunity. This is a homecoming of sorts, and Minnesota is a program that I am very familiar with from my previous time in the surrounding area and in the Big Ten. I am looking forward to getting back to the area and to meet the team, alumni and fans. I am also looking forward to reconnecting with local high school and club coaches. I can’t wait to get to work.”

The Gophers lost to 13th-seeded Penn State in the opening game of the 2023 Big Ten Tournament at Target Center, putting the team’s record for the season at 11-19 (4-14 in conference play).