Dawn Plitzuweit, an assistant coach for the Michigan women's basketball team for the past five seasons, was named the head coach at Northern Kentucky on Thursday.

She takes over as the school is on the verge of moving up to the NCAA Division I level. The Norse will officially join the Atlantic Sun Conference on July 1 and begin competition in the conference in all sports in the 2012-13 seasons.

Plitzuweit, 39, also replaces a legendary coach in Nancy Winstel. She built Northern Kentucky into a Division II powerhouse over 29 seasons before announcing her retirement on March 28.

"I am extremely thrilled and honored to be named the fourth coach in the rich history of Northern Kentucky women's basketball,” Plitzuweit said in a statement.

“I would also like to thank coach Nancy Winstel for all of her dedication in building this championship-caliber program at NKU. I am eager to get started and am looking forward to building relationships with the current players, our incoming freshmen, the coaches in the area, our future recruits, our alumni, the fans, and the entire NKU community."

Plitzuweit was an associate head coach for former Michigan head coach Kevin Borseth, who resigned that position in April to return to Wisconsin-Green Bay.

Borseth was replaced former St. John's coach Kim Barnes Arico.

Before arriving in Ann Arbor, Plitzuweit led Grand Valley State to four postseason berths in five years and won the NCAA Division II national championship in 2006. That postseason run included a 91-70 win over Northern Kentucky in a Great Lakes Regional semifinal.

“We were very familiar with Dawn and her ability to get the best and the most out of her players,” said Northern Kentucky athletic director Scott Eaton. “She knows the game, is an outstanding recruiter and a great person. Her players have excelled in the classroom as well as on the court, and she is a great fit for NKU as we make the transition to Division I.”

According to a Cincinnati.com report, Eaton's coaching search was narrowed to four candidates who were brought on-campus for final interviews, where Eaton said Plitzuweit stood apart.

“We wanted someone with significant Division I experience but we also needed successful head coaching experience. And she had that,” Eaton said. “We needed someone that had been in charge of a program, that had offered scholarships before, that had been successful. And what she did at Grand Valley was incredible for the time period she was there. Everywhere she’s been, she’s been successful.”