William & Mary head women’s basketball coach Ed Swanson announced the hiring of Mary Gleason as an assistant coach on Friday afternoon. Gleason has 19 years of coaching experience as a head coach and assistant coach, and at both the collegiate and high school levels, and joins the Tribe after a one-year stint at Valparaiso.
“We are ecstatic to welcome Mary to the Tribe women’s basketball staff,” head coach Ed Swanson said. “Her resume speaks for itself, and she has nearly two decades of experience in coaching as both a head coach and an assistant and at both the high school and collegiate levels. Not only does she have vast experience, but has experience working at high academic institutions. We look forward to her bringing her expertise with her to Williamsburg, and ready to get rolling.”
Last season, Gleason was an assistant at Valpo where she assisted in all program aspects, including: recruiting, scouting, game planning, game-time decisions, team academics, and compliance. She was also in charge of the program’s international recruiting. The Crusaders recorded their best marks since 2007 in 3-point percentage, 3-point scoring, rebounds, and steals, and she helped two players score more than 400 points and over 200 rebounds, the highest stats in the past 11 seasons. Following the season, one player was named to the Missouri Valley Conference All-Rookie Team and Scholar Athlete Honorable Mention.
“I am very excited to work at such a prestigious nationally recognized elite academic institution like William & Mary,” Gleason said. “I’ve been privileged to work at some of the best schools in the country and now William & Mary is a dream come true. Working with an accomplished winning coach, like Coach Swanson, is something I look forward to. I am eager to learn and grow in the profession under his leadership. I am ready to work with the high achieving student athletes at William & Mary and look forward to building champions on the court and in life. William & Mary’s priorities are consistent with my priorities of high academics while building winning cultures and championships. There are great things going on at William & Mary at this time and it is an honor to be a part of it.”
Gleason returned to the high school level and spent four years as the head varsity girl’s basketball coach, associate admissions director, and a history teacher at St. Pius X High School in Houston, Texas. She helped the development of players to First-Team All-District, Second-Team All-District, and All-State Honorable Mention. In the classroom, she was a ninth grade Ancient World History, and was admission liaison for student-family visits, promotional presentations for the school, and made admission decisions as an associate admissions director.
After being an assistant for 10 years, Gleason received her first head coaching gig as she was named the head coach at Houston Baptist. During her time as head coach she oversaw the transition of the program from an NAIA school to a NCAA Division I school. She coached and developed players to Great West First-Team, GW All-Newcomer Team, and Second-Team All-Great West. One of her freshman ranked fourth in DI in double-double production. During her time in Houston, she claimed the Huskies first-ever postseason berth. As always, her teams performed in the classroom. The women’s basketball team had the highest GPA on campus, was ranked No. 11 nationally in GPA, and she had three players earn all-academic honors from the conference.
Prior to returning to Texas, she spent three seasons at Dartmouth as the top assistant and recruiting coordinator. The Big Green won back-to-back Ivy League Championships in 2008 and 2009, and made appearances in the NCAA Tournament and WNIT. She coached the Ivy League Rookie of the Year in 2008, Ivy League Player of the Year in 2009, as well as multiple First and Second-Team All-Ivy League selections.
From NYU, Gleason went to Princeton where she was the top assistant and recruiting coordinator for four seasons. She helped the Tigers to the 2006 Ivy League Championship, as the team set the school record for wins in a season and in conference play. At Princeton, she recruited and mentored the Ivy League Rookie of the Year in 2005, and had multiple players earn First and Second All-Ivy League honors.
Following her playing career, Gleason embarked on her coaching journey with a three-year stint at NYU. With the Violets, she helped the team to a 79-15 mark, with three postseason berths highlighted by a trip to the 2001 DIII Elite Eight. NYU also won back-to-back ECAC Metro Championships in 2002 and 2003. On staff, she was in charge of nation-wide recruiting efforts, and helped the Violets secure their first-ever early recruiting class. In all, Gleason brought 21 players to NYU with her final class being seniors on the school’s trip to the DIII Final Four in 2007.
After her stint at SMU, Gleason played in the professional ranks in Europe for three seasons. She played for Team Sarine in the Division I League in Fribourg, Switzerland, leading the team in points and assist, and also played for Team Canal de Isabel II in the top league in Spain. She also had a pair of tryouts with WNBA’s Houston Comets and Detroit Shock.
Gleason went from walk-on to three-year starter and senior year captain in some of the brightest days of SMU women’s basketball history. She led the Mustangs to the WNIT Championship in 1993, before back-to-back NCAA Tournament berths in the school’s first victory in the Big Dance. She set the SMU record for the most career 3-pointers, and earned Southwest All-Conference honors and Southwest Conference Commissioner’s Honor Roll.
She earned bachelor’s degree from SMU in History and earned teaching certification in 1995. Gleason has worked at multiple elite level camps, is a member of the WBCA, volunteers at Monday after the Masters.
