The Stony Brook Seawolves women’s basketball team is the college basketball program representing

Stony Brook University Stony Brook University (SBU), officially the State University of New York at Stony Brook, is a public research university in Stony Brook, New York. Along with the University at Buffalo, it is one of the State University of New York system' ...

in Stony Brook, New York. The Seawolves currently participate as part of the

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athleti ...

basketball, and compete on the

Colonial Athletic Association The Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA's NCAA Division I, Division I whose full members are located in East Coast ...

. The Seawolves currently play their home games in the

Island Federal Credit Union Arena Island Federal Credit Union Arena, commonly referred to as Island Federal Arena, is a 4,000-seat multi-purpose arena in Stony Brook, New York. It is the home of the Stony Brook Seawolves men's and women's basketball teams. Originally built in 1 ...

. Stony Brook reached the NCAA tournament for the first time in 2021, a year after the team's 28–3 season ended prematurely with the cancelation of the America East Championship and NCAA Tournament due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

History

Stony Brook began play in the 1969–70 season at the Division III level. The program advanced to Division II beginning in the 1995–96 year, and fully transitioned to Division I in 1999 with Trish Roberts as head coach. Stony Brook played as a Division I independent for its first two seasons before joining the America East in 2001. In Stony Brook's first season in the America East, the Seawolves finished in seventh place but earned two upsets in the tournament to advance to the finals. Stony Brook almost reached the NCAA Tournament in its first season in the America East but fell to

Hartford Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since t ...

50–47. Roberts failed to reach double-digit victories in her next two seasons and resigned on August 25, 2004 to tend to family issues.

Sacramento Monarchs The Sacramento Monarchs were a basketball team based in Sacramento, California. They played in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) from 1997 until folding on November 20, 2009. They played their home games at ARCO Arena. The Mon ...

assistant Maura McHugh was named interim head coach on September 10 and promoted to full-time head coach on April 26, 2005 after an 8–20 season. In McHugh's second season, Stony Brook won 20 games for the first time in program history and finished a program-best second place in the regular season. On December 2, 2005, Stony Brook played No. 19 Temple, its first ranked opponent in program history, and pulled the 58–56 upset. The Seawolves lost in the conference semifinals but qualified for the WNIT, where they lost to

Hofstra Hofstra University is a private university in Hempstead, New York. It is Long Island's largest private university. Hofstra originated in 1935 as an extension of New York University (NYU) under the name Nassau College – Hofstra Memorial of New ...

in the program's first-ever postseason appearance. After another second-place finish in the conference regular season in 2006–07 at 14–2, the Seawolves were upset by UMBC in the quarterfinals and McHugh resigned three months later. McHugh's assistant Michele Cherry was named her successor, but Cherry suffered three straight 20-loss seasons and was on course for a fourth before she resigned in the middle of the 2010–11 campaign, leading assistant Evelyn Thompson to handle head coaching duties for the remainder of the season. On April 7, 2011,

Canisius Canisius may refer to: People * Saint Peter Canisius (1521–1597), Dutch Jesuit Catholic priest * Theodorich Canisius (1532–1606), Jesuit academic, half-brother of St. Peter Canisius * Henricus Canisius (1562–1610), Dutch canonist and histori ...

associate head coach Beth O'Boyle was named Stony Brook's fourth Division I head coach. O'Boyle posted a dismal 4–26 record in her first season but saw a 10-win improvement the next year and another 10-win improvement the year after. The 2013–14 season saw O'Boyle and the Seawolves break the program record for most single-season Division I wins with 24. Stony Brook returned to the America East Championship for the first time since 2002, but were blown out 70–46 by Albany. Stony Brook qualified for the 2014 WNIT and lost to

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and t ...

86–48 in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines' head coach was former Stony Brook player

Kim Barnes Arico Kimberly Ann Barnes Arico (born August 9, 1970) is an American women's basketball coach, and the current head coach of the Michigan Wolverines women's basketball team. Previously, she was head coach of the St. John's University women's basketball ...

. On April 28, 2014, O'Boyle resigned to accept the head coaching position at VCU. On June 15, 2014, Auburn assistant head coach Caroline McCombs was named as O'Boyle's successor. In McCombs' first two seasons, Stony Brook finished with 17 wins and in third place in the America East, earning bids to the WBI both times, losing to

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centur ...

in 2015 and

Youngstown State Youngstown State University (YSU or Youngstown State) is a public university in Youngstown, Ohio. It was founded in 1908 and is the easternmost member of the University System of Ohio. The university is composed of six undergraduate colleges ...

in 2016. McCombs became the program's all-time winningest head coach on November 21, 2018 with her 67th win, surpassing Roberts. Stony Brook won its first game against a Power Five school by defeating Penn State 81–70 on November 25, 2018. Her first 20-win season came in 2018–19 but ended in the America East semifinals with a loss to Hartford. McCombs reached 100 career victories on January 2, 2020. The 2019–20 season saw Stony Brook shatter program records, at one point owning a 22-game winning streak, the longest in the nation. Stony Brook defeated

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

in December for its second program Power Five victory. The Seawolves won their first America East regular season title after defeating

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provin ...

to improve to 25–1 and 13–0 in conference. As the top seed, Stony Brook advanced to the America East Championship with a 28–3 record, set to face

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and nor ...

at home, but the game was canceled a day before as the

began to sweep through the United States. The Seawolves still earned the America East title as the highest seed remaining. Stony Brook earned its redemption in the 2020–21 season. The Seawolves, as the second seed in the America East Tournament, earned a bye to the semifinals, routing UMass Lowell to set up a championship rematch with top-seeded Maine. On the road, Stony Brook came back from an 11-point deficit to upset Maine 64–60 and clinch its first trip to the NCAA Tournament in program history. Stony Brook lost 79–44 to

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

in the first round. McCombs announced on April 2, 2021 that she would be leaving Stony Brook after seven years to be

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

's new head coach. On April 28, 2021,

James Madison James Madison Jr. (March 16, 1751June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Father. He served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison is hailed as the "Father of the Constitution" for h ...

assistant Ashley Langford was hired to replace McCombs.

Postseason

NCAA tournament results

The Seawolves have appeared in the

NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament The NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament is a single-elimination tournament played each spring in the United States, currently featuring 68 women's college basketball teams from the Division I level of the National Collegiate Athletic ...

one time. Their overall combined record is 0–1.

WNIT results

The Seawolves achieved their first

Women's National Invitation Tournament The Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT) is a women's national college basketball tournament with a preseason and postseason version played every year. It is operated in a similar fashion to the men's college National Invitation Tourname ...

(WNIT) appearance in 2006. Their overall combined WNIT record is 0–3.

WBI results

The Seawolves have appeared in the

Women's Basketball Invitational The Women's Basketball Invitational (WBI) is a women's college basketball tournament created in 2009 by Sport Tours. The inaugural tournament occurred at the conclusion of the 2009–10 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. Selections for th ...

(WBI) two times. Their overall combined WBI record is 0–2.

Season-by-season results

Awards

America East Coach of the Year * Caroline McCombs – 2020 America East Player of the Year * Mykeema Ford – 2007 America East Defensive Player of the Year * Dana Ferraro – 2006 * Chikilra Goodman – 2014 America East Rookie of the Year * Jessica Smith – 2004 * Ogechi Anyagaligbo – 2016 America East Sixth Player of the Year * McKenzie Bushee – 2021 America East All-Conference First Team * Sherry Jordan – 2002, 2003 * Mykeema Ford – 2006, 2007 * Jessica Smith – 2007 * Chikilra Goodman – 2014 * Sabre Proctor – 2014, 2015 * Shania Johnson – 2018, 2019 * Jerell Matthews – 2019 * India Pagan – 2020 America East All-Conference Defensive Team * Dana Ferraro – 2006, 2008 * Jessica Smith – 2007 * Kirsten Jeter – 2011 * Chikilra Goodman – 2014 * Jessica Ogunnorin – 2015 * Christina Scognamiglio – 2017 * Cheyenne Clark – 2020 * Hailey Zeise – 2021

References

External links

* {{Colonial Athletic Association women's basketball navbox