College of Mount St. Joseph Director of Athletics Steve Radcliffe is pleased to announce the hiring of Janel Iden as the new head women’s basketball coach at the Mount.
Iden comes to the Mount after two years as an assistant coach at Earlham (IN) College, a fellow Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) institution. While at Earlham, Iden helped the Quakers to a positive per game scoring margin this past season as well as the program’s most wins in a season since the 2003-2004 season, reaching double-figures. Additionally, Earlham finished within the top 20 percent of teams in the NCAA Division III this past season in points per game, field goal percentage, three-point field goal percentage, free throw percentage, steals and turnover margin. Iden assisted in bringing in the largest freshman class in Earlham’s women’s basketball history for the 2013-2014 season, totaling 12 recruits.
Iden had this to say about taking over the College’s women’s basketball program, her first college head coaching position.
“It is an honor and humbling to be the head women’s basketball coach at the College of Mount St. Joseph,” Iden said. “I am confident that the program at the Mount is one that can be successful. The players have expressed excitement and a willingness to do what it takes in order to lay down the foundation building towards success. I’m excited to begin promoting the College of Mount St. Joseph and the basketball program.”
Prior to Earlham, Iden was an assistant women’s basketball coach at the University of Mount Union for three seasons, helping the Raiders to an 80-11 overall record, two regular season Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) championships, three OAC tournament championships and a three NCAA Tournament appearances, twice advancing to the third round. She also worked in the Office of Admission for five years while at Mount Union.
Radcliffe was excited about Iden joining the Lions’ coaching staff.
“Janel brings with her a background in college admissions from the University of Mount Union,’’ Radcliffe said. “It provides her a solid foundation for recruiting championship caliber players to the Mount. Coach Iden has experience in coaching championship caliber players at Mount Union and experience in turning a program around toward achieving performance success at Earlham College. This will be invaluable experience in changing the culture within the women’s basketball program at the Mount and moving the program back to performance excellence.”
Iden is a 2007 graduate of Otterbein University earning a bachelor’s degree in organizational communication and a minor in speech communication. During her collegiate basketball career at Otterbein she was a member of the winningest team in school history. Iden was a team captain, a two-year starter and four-year letter-winner. She was among the top 10 players in the conference in 2006-2007 in assists and defensive rebounds per game. Iden excelled in the classroom, as she was named a four-time Otterbein Scholar-Athlete. She was voted by her teammates and coaches for the 2006-2007 Leadership Award and 2004-2005 Hustle Award.
Iden holds a master’s degree in higher education administration and student personnel from Kent State University in 2012. Iden is also a certified sports conditioning specialist. She has attended numerous basketball clinics and workshops, related to coaching and has also worked youth camps and clinics.
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