Mount Vernon didn’t have to look far to find a new girls’ basketball coach. Jacob Misener was right there on the bench.
The Mustangs promoted their assistant coach to the head job Monday, a few weeks after Nathan Sanderson stepped down following a Class 3A championship season.
“Jake’s life and his family life is all about basketball,” Mount Vernon activities director Matt Thede said, adding the hire is pending school board approval on Monday. “He lives and breathes basketball. It is really exciting for our kids to have someone like that.”
Misener has been waiting for his first top job. He’s been an assistant under Sanderson at Mount Vernon for four seasons, and an assistant at Mount Mercy for nine seasons – two with the women, seven with the men.
And his day job is running Shoot 360, a year-round basketball training facility in Hiawatha.
“My wife (Mount Mercy Hall of Famer Emily Greiner) and I have been waiting patiently for close to a decade,” Misener said. “It has always been a goal of mine to run our own program. But I’m picky and choosy.”
With Mount Vernon, Misener is taking over a program that went 26-1 this past season and brings a 25-game winning streak forward into the 2025-26 season.
“It’ll be great to have a background with the girls,” Misener said. “I’m not starting fresh with a brand-new place. It is a ready-made program. I believe in what we’ve been doing the last few years. It works. I’ll do my best to put my own spin on it.”
Misener, a Cedar Rapids Kennedy grad, played college ball at Mount Mercy, helping take the Mustangs to the NAIA tournament twice.
“I’ve been all basketball since I can remember,” Misener said. “I’m excited for this new challenge. I’ll do the job the best I can. Mount Vernon has been incredible. Nothing but awesome, excellent people.”
He connected with Sanderson through backyard whiffleball, of all things. Sanderson mentored Misener first, then brought him to the bench first at Linn-Mar, then at Mount Vernon.
“Jake is going to be great,” Sanderson said. “He has tremendous positive energy and is great in practice. He does a great job putting the time in and the kids love being around him. The program will be in good hands, that’s for sure.”
Thede said it was a natural fit and easy decision for the interview committee.
“Jake had an incredible relationship with the girls and extensive basketball knowledge,” Thede said. “It was a double bonus, for sure.”