Joe C. Meriweather
Head Coach

Joe C. Meriweather enters his 10th season as the head coach of the women's basketball program at Park University.

Last season, Meriweather guided the Pirates to a 19-12 overall record as Park qualified for the NAIA Division I National Tournament for the first time in school history.  For his efforts, he was named the 2005-06 NAIA Division I Independent Region Coach of the Year.

In his nine-year career at Park, the 1998 AMC Coach of the Year has posted a 100-160 record, but over the last five season his teams have won 75 games, including a school record 22 wins (3 losses) in 2003-04.

Before taking the helm of the Pirate program, Meriweather enjoyed a long professional career in the NBA and overseas. Drafted in the first round by the Houston Rockets in 1975, he also played for the Atlanta Hawks, New Orleans Jazz, New York Knicks and played his final five seasons with the Kansas City Kings from 1980-85. During his 10-year NBA career, he averaged 8.1 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. Following his time in the NBA, Meriweather played abroad in Badalona, Spain, and Bologna, Italy. 

Meriweather played collegiately at Southern Illinois University from 1973-75, where he still ranks sixth among the school's all-time career scoring leaders (1,536). During his time at SIU, he played on the United States National Team that finished third at the 1974 World Championships in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Following his playing career, Meriweather served as general manager and head coach of the Kansas City Mustangs women's professional team from 1992 to 1995. He has also coached in the Kansas City metro area at Bishop Hogan High School and Penn Valley Community College. 

Meriweather earned his bachelor's degree from Southern Illinois in 1975 and earned a master's degree in public administration from Park in 2002.

Wakisha Briggs
Assistant Coach 

Wakisha Briggs enters her first season as assistant women's basketball coach at Park University, coming to the Pirates from Fort Scott Community College were she was the Head Assistant Basketball Coach.for two years.

While at Fort Scott, the team finished the 2006-07 season with an overall record of 21-9, ending the year ranked No. 3 in the Jayhawk Conference and Region VI.

She also coached at   Penn Valley Community College where she was the Head Assistant for 2 years. 

In her time at Penn Valley, the team went undefeated in region play during the 2003-2004 season and the team competed in the national tournament. 

In 2004-2005, Penn Valley also went undefeated in conference play.

Briggs is a graduate of the University of Missouri-Kansas City, and before attending the UMKC, she for 2 seasons at Penn Valley Community College between 1994 and 1996. 

Briggs is currently completing her Master's Degree in Adult Education, and she is also a personal trainer for upcoming athletes on the high school and collegiate levels.