INDIANA, Pa. – IUP head women's basketball coach Tom McConnell has been named the 2017-18 IUP Women's Coach of the Year, announced Wednesday, June 6 by the IUP Athletic Department.
 
The award is part of the Crimson & Gray Awards, which recognize the top athletes, coaches, teams and performances of the IUP Athletics season. The Awards are in their second year of existence.
 
RELATED | McConnell named PSAC West Women's Basketball Coach of the Year
RELATED | IUP Coach of the Year past winners
RELATED | 2017-18 Crimson & Gray Awards

McConnell led the women's basketball program to its best ever season in 2017-18. The Crimson Hawks finished with a 30-4 record, won the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division regular season title, and advanced to the national semifinals of the Elite Eight, the furthest any IUP women's basketball team has ever reached.
 
IUP defeated Bowie State 75-60 to claim its first Atlantic Region Championship – and second ever regional title – before advancing to the Elite Eight in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The Crimson Hawks then picked up a thrilling 75-71 win over Stonehill in the national quarterfinals, the program's first win in that round, before falling to undefeated and No. 1 ranked Ashland in the semifinals.
 
IUP's 30 victories set a new program record, as did its .882 win percentage. The Crimson Hawks extended their record to 21 consecutive home victories (which began last season) and tied the program record with 20 conference victories.
 
The Crimson Hawks finished the year ranked No. 3 in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) NCAA Division II Top 25 Coaches' Poll, their highest ever end-of-season ranking.
 
McConnell was named the PSAC West Coach of the Year.
 
About the Coach of the Year Award
The IUP Coach of the Year is given each year to the men's and women's coaches who did the most outstanding job leading his or her team. Awards are given to the top men's team coach and women's team coach. The Coach of the Year Award began in 2017 with the creation of the Crimson & Gray Awards.  
 
About the Crimson & Gray Awards
The Crimson & Gray Awards are in their second year of existence and consist of 18 total categories - nine women, nine men - with top performers and performances from the 2017-18 year eligible.
 
Continuing from their inaugural year, awards include: Scholar-Athlete of the Year, Coach of the Year, Performance of the Year, Freshman of the Year, Breakthrough Athlete of the Year, Postseason Performer of the Year, Senior of the Year, Team of the Year and Athlete of the Year.

The IUP Sports Information Office collected award nominations from its coaches, with those nominees voted on by a select panel to narrow each category down to three finalists. That panel votes again to determine the winners.
 
Up next
The 2017-18 IUP Men's and Women's Performances of the Year will be announced Thursday.
 
Follow
For up-to-date game information, visit www.IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP Athletics on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk.