Howard women's hoops coach Tiesha Grace starred at Roosevelt High School
Roosevelt player Tiesha Grace, No. 30 in her team photo. Credit: Joe Vito
Tiesha Grace was never one to shy away from a challenge.
From her days leading the Roosevelt girls basketball team into the New York State girls championship tournament, to her days as a star forward for the University of New Haven, Grace has always been the team leader.
Grace now moves along the sideline in her seventh season as the head coach for the Howard University women’s basketball team.
She will guide the Bisons against South Carolina, the top ranked team in the country, in Friday’s first round of the women’s NCAA Tournament.
Howard earned its first NCAA Tournament win when it defeated University of the Incarnate Word, 55-51, in an NCAA play-in game Wednesday night.
"Tiesha was a tenacious player and up for any challenge," said Roosevelt’s Joe Vito, who has coached multiple sports in the district for 33 years. "She was the leader of a fantastic basketball team at Roosevelt in the 90s. They played physical, tough defense and could beat many of the boys teams. She went on to have a wonderful collegiate playing career and is now an outstanding coach."
Grace earned Newsday All-Long Island second team honors in 1994 for legendary coach Don Crummell. She led the Rough Riders to the Long Island Class B title and the finals of the state tournament.
She enjoyed a brilliant career at the University of New Haven, graduating in 1999. She is one of only two Chargers to record 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds for her career, totaling 1,347 points and 1,047 boards with 47 double-doubles from 1994-98.
Success follows Grace wherever she coaches. Howard University (21-9) captured the MEAC championship this season, one year after being denied in the tournament final.
Grace was voted MEAC coach of the year in 2020-2021 after leading the Bisons to the Northern Division title. She took over at Howard after spending two successful seasons as the head coach at her alma mater where won over 73 percent of her games (44-16) and led the Chargers to a pair of NCAA Division II tournament appearances.
"She’s a winner," Vito said. "We’re very proud of her in Roosevelt."
Gregg Sarra is Newsday's high school sports editor and has been on the beat since the mid-1980s.
