Friends Athletics
Levi Convirs, Sports Information Director
WICHITA – Dean Jaderston has been selected as the next head women’s basketball coach at Friends University, Athletic Director Dr. Rob Ramseyer has announced.
“I am excited that Dean has accepted our offer to become our women’s basketball coach,” Ramseyer said. “He is an experienced coach who has won KCAC championships and also has a long track record of leading programs that develop the whole person. We are excited to see his impact on our women’s basketball program, athletic department, and University.”
Jaderston brings a stark familiarity to the Falcons, having served as the head men’s basketball coach for KCAC program Sterling College for the past 13 seasons.
At Sterling, Jaderston instilled a winning culture and became the program’s all-time winningest coach with 189 career victories. He guided the Warriors to a pair of KCAC regular season championships and also a postseason conference title.
A two-time KCAC Coach of the Year, Jaderston coached six NAIA All-America performers during his tenure at Sterling.
Off the hardwood, Jaderston also made a significant impact, overseeing a team GPA of at least 3.0 for 11 of the past 13 years. He also led three basketball mission trips to Panama.
“It’s hard to put into words how excited I am to be the next head women’s coach at Friends University,” Jaderston said. “For the past 13 years I have competed against Friends, and in many ways, it has always been the standard of consistency and excellence on the court I’ve measured our teams against. I am incredibly grateful to Dr. Ramseyer and President Carey for the opportunity and am excited to be part of their vision for Friends University and the women’s basketball program.”
Prior to taking over at Sterling, Jaderston served in the dual role of head men’s basketball coach and athletic director at Trinity International University in Deerfield, Ill. for five seasons.
He also spent eight seasons as both the head women’s basketball and women’s tennis coach at Rosemount High School in Rosemount, Minn.
“I’m not just excited to coach at Friends, but I am very excited to coach women’s basketball,” Jaderston said. “My very first coaching job was the Minnetonka eighth grade middle school basketball team, and I loved it. For eight years I coached high school girls’ basketball and tennis in Minnesota, and I loved the work ethic and the competiveness of the girls I coached, but more importantly I loved how much their team mattered to them.”
“For a number of years I had the privilege to coach alongside the great Sterling women’s basketball coach, Lonnie Kruse, and I got to see firsthand how he built a team culture focused on strong character, tight family, and fierce excellence. That is my vision for the Falcon Women’s Basketball Program! I’m excited to come to a program known for its fierceness and success, and I think we will do something amazing on and off the court.”
Before venturing into the coaching profession, Jaderston was a successful college basketball player at Crown College in St. Bonifacius, Minn. He was a four-time all-conference selection while helping the team advance to four national tournaments. He also earned All-America and Academic All-America honors at Crown College.
His collegiate athletic career wasn’t limited to basketball, as he also competed in tennis for three years at Crown and was a two-time conference singles and doubles champion.
Jaderston and his wife Julie have been married for 32 years and are very active in youth and camping ministries. They currently serve as executive directors of a premier summer Christian family conference called Northern Pines of Minnesota.
He earned his Bachelor of Arts in History/Secondary Education from Crown College in 1989 and then completed a Master of Arts in Adlerian Counseling and Psychotherapy from Adler Graduate School in 1998.
“With two of our sons, their wives, and our four grandchildren living here, it is an amazing opportunity to coach in the city of Wichita. I’m excited to be here and I can’t wait to get started!” Jaderston said.