Head coach Angel Elderkin announced the hiring of Mark Cascio on May 14, 2021
"It is with great excitement that we welcome Mark, his wife Kristen, and two daughters Elouise and Charlotte Cate into our App State Women's Basketball family," coach Elderkin stated. "This past season, I had the opportunity to work with Mark as a consultant for our program. It was during this time I realized how aligned we were when it came to the style of play, culture, and leadership development. Mark is an excellent teacher of the game and will bring us a wealth of experience to his role. He will help us recruit the best players and people, and will be an invaluable asset to our current team, staff, and athletic department.
Mark's responsibilities will include player development, assisting and implementing our offensive style of play as well as recruiting organization and evaluation.
"My family and I are so excited to join the women's basketball program and the App State community," Cascio said. "I am looking forward to working with coach Elderkin. I have a tremendous amount of respect for her as a person and a coach. We instantly felt at home in Boone on our visit to campus and we look forward to becoming Mountaineers!"
Cascio arrives at App State after enjoying a successful career as a high school basketball coach for 16 years in Louisiana with three teams. He has a career mark of 333-163 while posting 12 straight winning seasons. In his 16-year tenure, Cascio has advanced to five Louisiana High School Athletic Association State Final Fours, highlighted by a state championship in 2012, captured seven district titles, and won seven Coach of the Year awards.
In 16 years as a head coach, he's led his teams to nine, 20-win seasons and a pair of 30-win campaigns.
In his most recent stop at Catholic High School, he led them to an impressive 174-77 record since 2013 while advancing to four final fours, capturing four district titles, and four Coach of the Year awards.
Cascio coached Christian Life Academy from 2010-13, where he was 75-20 with a state title and three consecutive seasons with 20-plus victories.
In his first coaching gig, he led Catholic of Pointe Coupe to its first playoff appearance in seven seasons and doubled its win total between 2007-08 and 2009-10.
Cascio has conducted basketball clinics across the country while giving mentorship and consulting experience at the international, NBA, NCAA, High School, AAU, and youth levels in part with Courtside Consulting.
Cascio and his wife, Kristen, are the parents of two daughters, Eloise and Charlotte Cate.
