Women's Basketball - Coaches
Chris Carlson
Head Coach
Carlson enters his fifth season as head coach of the NIC women’s team and is coming off of four 20-plus win seasons including an exceptional year in 2005-2006 when the Cardinals won the Scenic West Athletic Conference, the first for NIC since 1989.
Last year, the young Cardinal team finished runner-up in the region tournament with a 22-10 season. Coach Carlson was named SWAC Coach of the Year for 2005-2006 and has posted an 88-39 record in the last three years. Under Carlson’s leadership, NIC was rated as high as 12th in the NJCAA national poll. In addition, the Cardinals have earned Academic All-American Team status each of the last four seasons. Carlson has placed 13 of his players over the past four years into four-year programs, including seven Division I scholarships.
Prior to coming to North Idaho College, Carlson was an assistant coach for three years at Eastern Washington University where he helped guide the women’s team to their best record since 1988.
After graduating from Northeast Missouri State University in 1984 where he was named All-Conference for his NCAA Division II team, Carlson went on to play pro basketball in New Zealand. Carlson began his college coaching career at Eastern Oregon University in 1988 as an assistant coach working with the men’s and women’s programs. From 1992-2000 he was the head women’s coach at Big Bend Community College in Moses Lake, Wash., and was named Eastern Region Coach of the Year in 1999 for the Northwest Athletic Association of Community Colleges. Carlson was an assistant women’s coach at the University of Idaho from 2000-2001 before taking the assistant coaching job at Eastern Washington University.
Carlson coached the Spokane Stars AAU girl’s basketball team which placed eighth in the country in 1998. He recently started the North Idaho Elite AAU girl’s basketball program in North Idaho which placed as high as fourth in the most prestigious national tournaments last summer.
Carlson lives in Post Falls with his wife Carey and their three children, Christina, age 10; James, age 9; and their newborn baby, Jordan.
Carey Carlson
Assistant Coach
Carlson is entering her 15th year of coaching, 13 at the college level. Prior to coming to NIC, Carlson coached at Central Washington University, Big Bend Community College, the University of Idaho, and Post Falls High School where she led the Trojans to consecutive 4A state championships. Carlson has also coached for several AAU programs including the North Idaho Elite, which has quickly earned national recognition, and the Spokane Stars.Carlson played high school basketball at Central Valley in Spokane and went on to play college basketball at Big Bend Community College and Central Washington University where she was an All-Conference selection. She earned her bachelor’s degree in biology and health education and has 10 years of teaching experience including five years at Post Falls High School. Carlson is currently finishing her master’s degree in education through the University of Idaho.
Kristen DeHaas
Manager
DeHaas returns as the Cardinal manager for the second straight year fulfilling a wide variety of responsibilities for the team. She is a 2007 graduate of Coeur d’Alene High School where she played volleyball. She is the daughter of Calvin and Lorrie DeHaas and has one sister Kelsi (17) and two brothers Kaleb (15), and Kolby (12). Her family belongs to the North Idaho College Athletic Booster Club and was runner-up Booster Club Family of the Year in 2005. Her parents were pivotal in the early establishment of the host family program at NIC, and her family has been actively hosting at least one athlete every year since the formation of the program. Her family loves getting to know all of the players and hosts a few team dinners every year. Her hobbies include watching movies, shopping, and hanging out with friends and family.