Caroline McCombs, who has guided the Stony Brook women’s basketball team to record-setting heights, will remain the head coach of the Seawolves for the long term.
Stony Brook director of athletics Shawn Heilbron announced a contract extension for McCombs on Monday that runs through the 2024-25 season.
McCombs earned America East Coach of the Year honors this past season while leading Stony Brook to a program-best 28-3 record. Stony earned its first-ever America East regular-season and postseason titles and was a win away from earning its first-ever berth to the NCAA Tournament when the season was halted.
The victory total included a 22-game winning streak that garnered the team votes in the Associated Press and USA Today top-25 polls.
“Caroline has led our women’s basketball program to historic heights. I’m beyond excited to continue building together,” Heilbron said. “Over her six seasons at Stony Brook, she has worked tirelessly to elevate our women’s basketball program on a national level. I believe that our greatest days as a program are in front of us.”
In America East action, McCombs coached the Seawolves to a 14-2 record, securing the No. 1 seed in the playoffs. In the postseason, Stony Brook advanced to the America East championship game for just the third time in program history.
“I am so grateful for my time at Stony Brook University,” McCombs said. “The opportunity to continue working with our student-athletes, assistant coaches and support staff is a journey that I embrace. We will continue to transform the lives of our young women. I am thankful for Shawn Heilbron and how our program and I have flourished under his leadership over the past six years.”
In her six seasons on Long Island, McCombs’ student-athletes have combined for 25 all-conference honors, with six coming this past season alone. This season’s honorees included first-team and all-academic selection India Pagan and the Sixth Player of the Year Victoria Johnson.
Under McCombs’ watch, the Seawolves’ defense has been consistently ranked. It rose to 11th in the nation in 2019-20 after holding opponents to 54.6 points per game.
At 115-70 in her six-year head coaching career, McCombs is the program’s winningest coach in the Division I era and second-winningest coach overall.
Tagged with: America East Stony Brook
