Hellenthal out as Quincy University men’s basketball coach with four games remaining

QUINCY — Ryan Hellenthal has been relieved of his duties as the men’s basketball coach at Quincy University.

Josh Rabe, director of intercollegiate athletics, made the announcement in a press release Friday morning. Assistant coach Pat Richardson will assume the role of interim head coach for the remainder of the season.  A national search for a new head men’s basketball coach will commence immediately.

The Hawks have a 12-14 record this season, including a 5-11 mark in the Great Lakes Valley Conference, with four games remaining in the regular season. QU is tied for 13th in the 15-team GLVC. All teams will qualify for the postseason tournament this year.

Hellenthal concludes his five-year head coaching career at QU with a 50-80 record, with a GLVC record of 27-66. His first two teams at QU went 9-18 and 9-19. After the Hawks improved to 14-14 during the 2019-20 season, they stumbled to a 6-15 mark last season.

Hellenthal was an assistant to Marty Bell during the 2016-17 season, when the Hawks won 25 games and qualified for the NCAA Division II tournament.

He joined the QU staff with 15 years of previous collegiate coaching experience across the NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II and NJCAA Division I levels. He served as an assistant coach at Central Missouri from 2014-16, advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2015.

“Coach Hellenthal has made important contributions at Quincy University,” Rabe said in a press release. “He is a person of integrity, and he has emphasized Franciscan values in his time with us. We thank him for his service and wish him well.

“President (Brian) McGee and I want every student-athlete, in every sport, to have the opportunity for competitive success. The next head coach will chart a new course for our men’s basketball program and embrace new strategies for success in a highly competitive athletic conference. We are proud of the tradition of our men’s basketball program and have high expectations for the future. Nothing less than academic and athletic excellence will be acceptable.”