ALYTUS, Lithuania (August 6, 2025) – University of North Alabama women's basketball assistant coach Sandra Abston added a new accolade to her tally this summer, helping lead the U18 Swedish Women's Basketball team to a first-place finish in the FIBA Eurobasket Tournament last month.
The full-circle moment is now complete for Abston, who adds a second international medal to her tally and her first as a coach. Sweden went 6-1 in the tournament and earned the top prize after winning six-straight games.
Earning a medal as both a player and a coach, Abston was elated to be able to represent her country while winning the gold medal with Sweden.
"I had the time of my life over in Sweden, and I'm really proud of what we accomplished in the tournament," said Abston. "The growth in the team from the previous season is tremendous, and I'm so honored to be able to accomplish this feat now as both a coach and player. I'm at a complete loss of words right now."
The 2025 tournament saw a big turnaround from the previous season for the U18 team. The team went 2-5 and finished 17th out of 18 teams in 2024, failing to make the knockout round.
The journey to the gold medal began with four group stage games before heading into the ensuing quarter, semi and final rounds. The Swedish team narrowly dropped their opening game to Germany, 44-49, but answered back with an 81-41 triumph over Macedonia. The final two group games saw Sweden defeat Ireland, 86-76, and Romania, 61-48, to secure their berth into the quarterfinal round.
Sweden was tested in the quarterfinals but prevailed with a 73-70 win over Estonia. The semifinal round saw the team defeat tournament hosts Lithuania, 65-59, to set up a rematch with Germany in the final. Sweden and Germany battled in the gold-medal game, but Sweden overcame a 13-point deficit to rally towards the championship over Germany, 77-69.
The win cemented Sweden as champions of the Division B campaign in EuroBasket, securing a spot in Division A next summer.
The result did not go unnoticed by UNA head coach Candi Whitaker.
"I am so proud for Sandra and what she has been able to accomplish with the Swedish National Team," said Whitaker. "The Swedish National team had a tremendous turnaround from last year to winning the championship this year. I know Sandra is so proud to have been a part of seeing the turnaround and the Swedish National Team return to the A Division."
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