Meadors to coach Atlanta's WNBA team

ATLANTA - Marynell Meadors, named the first coach of the new WNBA Atlanta franchise, knows something about starting a franchise.

Wednesday's announcement that Meadors will be Atlanta's first coach comes 10 years after she became the first coach for the WNBA's Charlotte Sting. Meadors was an assistant coach for the Washington Mystics from 2005-07.

Atlanta will begin play in 2008.

Meadors, 64, won more than 500 games on the college level at Tennessee Tech and Florida State. She was the first coach at Tennessee Tech, where Georgia coach Andy Landers began his career as her assistant.

The still-unnamed Atlanta franchise is owned by Ron Terwilliger, who said he was impressed by Meadors' experience as a coach and knowledge of players in the WNBA and in college.

``She knows how to operate a WNBA team and go through the startup phase,'' Terwilliger said.

Atlanta was named last month as the WNBA's 14th team.

(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)