SLIPPERY ROCK — Tanya Bauer was hired as the women's basketball coach at Slippery Rock University.

An assistant coach at Southern Illinois the past two seasons, Bauer has nine years of experience as a Division I assistant coach. She also served as head coach for a season at Division II Minnesota-Duluth, finishing 4-23 in 2007-08.

"That was a bad situation," Bauer said Monday, her first day at SRU. "I was the fourth head coach in four years and no recruiting had been done."

While at Minnesota-Duluth, Bauer met her fiance, Phil Longo, who was coaching football there.

She turned that into a long-distance relationship when she decided to accept the position at Southern Illinois.

"That was one of the hardest things I've done in my life," Bauer said. "But I've done plenty of moving around to advance my career and I felt I had to do it again."

Southern Illinois is coming off a 5-24 season. The Salukis were 12-43 in Bauer's two years with the program. Bauer assisted two different head coaches in two years.

She began her coaching career as an assistant under Lisa Stone at Wisconsin-Eau Claire and is a 1998 graduate of that school.

Stone now is the head coach at the University of Wisconsin.

"I am so excited for Tanya Bauer," Stone said in a released statement. "Slippery Rock made a great hire. You will love Tanya. She is a tireless worker, a good basketball coach and someone who will bring great pride to the university and its women's basketball program."

Bauer replaces Laurel Heilman, who guided SRU to a 6-21 record last season and was 110-149 in 10 years. Heilman fell one win short of tying Anne Griffiths' program record of 111 career wins.

SRU hasn't qualified for the PSAC Tournament in five years.

Bauer has experienced success as a Division I assistant coach, having coached at Santa Clara (Calif.) for four years, including the 2004-05 season, when the Broncos won the West Coast Conference title and reached the NCAA Tournament.

Bauer was an assistant coach at Drake for three years, helping the Bulldogs post a composite 64-27 record, including a Missouri Valley Conference title, two NCAA tournament bids and a Sweet 16 appearance in 2002.

SRU athletic director Paul Lueken said Bauer was selected from a pool of 95 candidates. Many of those candidates were collegiate assistants.

"Tanya separated herself from the pack during the interview process," Lueken said. "She's easy to talk with and you can tell she has a direction she wants to go. She's driven, she has great organizational skills and she definitely has a plan."

Longo now is recruiting coordinator and wide receivers coach at nearby Youngstown State, which played a part in Bauer's decision to pursue the SRU job.

"As you get older, you learn what's important in life," Bauer said. "I feel like I can have the best of both worlds here."

As a player, Bauer scored 1,022 points at Wisconsin-Eau Claire, 12th in Blugold history. She also ranks 12th in assists with 271 and 15th in rebounds with 513. She owns school records for single season and career 3-point shooting percentage and free throw shooting percentage.

Bauer led her teams to the NCAA Division III Tournament all four years, including two Elite Eight appearances and a national runner-up finish in 1997.

Bauer becomes the 10th SRU head women's basketball coach since 1969.

"There will be a transition period and the administration here understands that," she said. "But I'm here to win and the sooner, the better."

Tanya Bauer becomes the 10th Slippery Rock University women's basketball coach since 1969:<b>Years - Coach - W-L</b>1969-70 Roberta Braden 6-21970-79 Anne Griffiths 111-561979-80 JoAnn Reis 10-161980-82 Judy Battles 30-221982-88 Kathy Walton 81-681988-93 Cheryl Kennedy 59-721993-96 Laura Williges 52-291996-2000 Darcie Vincent 52-542000-10 Laurel Heilman 110-149