PEPPER PIKE, Ohio - The Ursuline College Athletic Department is excited to announce the hiring of Shannon Sword as the new Head Coach of the Ursuline Arrows basketball program. Sword comes to Ursuline following a very successful stint as the assistant basketball coach at Ashland University, who made a run to the NCAA Division II National Championship game this season.
“Shannon will be a great addition to our department and to Ursuline College,” said Athletic Director Cindy McKnight. “She has a good deal of NCAA Division II coaching experience, and has worked with a very successful program for years. I look forward to working with her and watching her develop our program into a competitive NCAA Division II basketball program.”
“Shannon is a great fit for Ursuline College because of her experience at a DII school," said College President Sister Diana Stano. "Her strong value system fits the mission and values of Ursuline. We are exciting about her presence in the athletic department.”
For Sword, this will be her first collegiate head coaching position, and she becomes the Arrows fourth coach in program history. In her coaching career, she has served as an assistant coach at all three levels of the NCAA (Division I, II, and III), following a very successful playing career at the Division I level.
"I want to build a program that mirrors the mission and values that are the foundation of Ursuline College,” said Sword. “I am dedicated to the student-athletes success and growth as both players and people, and I feel UC is a great fit for me. During my visit, I was able to meet with a majority of the players and was excited about their eagerness to work hard and improve. I look forward to getting to know the team, including the returners and the incoming freshmen. This is a great opportunity and I look forward to getting started!"
Over the past two years, under Ashland Head Coach Sue Ramsey, Sword helped guide the team to a GLIAC South Championship and runner-up finish in the GLIAC in 2010-11. In 2011-12, the team had a record year, going 33-2, winning all 33 games in a row, winning the GLIAC regular-season and tournament championships, and finishing #2 in the nation after falling in the NCAA Tournament finals.
“I am very excited for both Shannon and Ursuline College,” said Coach Ramsey. “Shannon has put in the time, energy, and effort as an assistant and is now ready to run her own program. I believe she is an excellent match for Ursuline College. Her desire to see her student-athletes grow and excel beyond the basketball court speaks directly to the core values of the college. Shannon has a tremendous understanding of Division II basketball and knows what it takes to be successful at that level. The future of UC Women’s Basketball is bright under the leadership of Shannon Sword.”
Sword will utilize her experiences on the court as well as her experiences off the court. As a Division I athlete for four years with Cleveland State University (2000-2004), she was a four-time letter winner and a four year Horizon League All-Academic Team selection. Sword joined the 1,000 point club at Cleveland State and holds the school record for three-point field goal and free throw percentage in a single-season.
For her efforts, Sword was named team MVP, team captain, was an All-Horizon League First Team, ranking second in the conference in scoring, and was CoSIDA Academic All-District First Team selection.
Following her graduation from Cleveland State, Sword took a position as the head junior varsity coach/assistant varsity coach at Miamisburg High School – her hometown – and also served as head coach of the Dayton Lady Hoopstars AAU team (under-15) from 2004-2005. She led the AAU team to the Ohio DII State Championship and with the High School varsity team, she helped guide them to a perfect 20-0 record, finishing 23-1 and a ranking of fourth in the final AP State Poll. The team was MML Champions, Sectional Champions and District Runner-Up.
In 2005-06, she began her collegiate coaching career as Assistant Coach of the Manhattanville College basketball team for one season. Sword then served as a graduate assistant coach at Ashland from 2006-2008, where she played a large role in the operations of the program, serving as the team academic advisor.
Under her supervision, the team earned a 3.4 team grade point average, which ranked 11th in the Division II WBCA Academic Top 25. She assisted in on-floor coaching, training, workouts, recruiting, and scouting. Her specialty has been the development of the post players.
Following her graduate assistant position at Ashland, Sword took a position as an assistant coach at Youngstown State University. At YSU, she took on a larger role within the program, including practice planning, game strategy, scouting, film, recruiting, liaison for NCAA eligibility, alumni relations, fundraising, travel, and camps/clinics.
Sword holds a degree from Cleveland State University in Sport Management (Magna Cum Laude in 2004) and a Master’s Degree from Ashland University in Education - Sport Education/Administration in 2008 (4.0 GPA in 2008).