Heidelberg Athletics Hall of Fame
For more than two decades, Karen McConnell was synonymous with the success of the Heidelberg women's basketball team. First as a player, then as a coach, McConnell was vital to the rise of the program.
As head coach for the Student Princes, McConnell compiled a record of 280-246 (.532) and won two Ohio Athletic Conference Coach of the Year honors (1990, 2003). She guided the 1989-90 team all the way to a third-place finish in the NCAA Division III Tournament.
A native of Mount Vernon, Ohio, McConnell scored 907 points during her playing career from 1981-1984. At the time of her graduation, she was third on the program's all-time scoring list and presently stands 15th. In her second year, McConnell and the Tricolor reached the 10-win plateau for the first time in school history – a feat that would be accomplished in 25 of the 26 seasons she was affiliated with Berg hoops.
A year removed from her playing days, McConnell began her coaching career as an assistant for Jerry Buccilla, a 1984 Heidelberg graduate and 1996 inductee into the Athletic Hall of Fame. After two seasons, McConnell took the reins from Buccilla, inheriting a remarkably tenacious roster. In her first season, Heidelberg finished with 12 wins in the OAC and 18 wins overall – both setting program records.
In the 1989-90 season, McConnell's squad – led by Dortha Ford ('90, HOF '98) and Kathy Musser ('91, HOF '01) – went 15-3 in the OAC to claim the conference title. In the OAC Tournament championship game, Ford sank a pair of free throws with :01 remaining, sending the Student Princes to a 61-60 victory over Capital University. The team advanced through the NCAA Tournament and into the Final Four at Hope College. After a loss in the semifinals, McConnell's team regrouped to win the consolation game – ending with an overall record of 27-6.
McConnell either played alongside or coached 13 of the top 15 scorers in program history, including Rachael Poland ('02, HOF '10). Her 280 career victories at Heidelberg puts her fifth in OAC women's basketball history.
After leaving Heidelberg following the 2008 season, McConnell had a stint as head coach at Wooster High School prior to her current role as head coach of the women's basketball team at Lourdes University in Sylvania.
(This profile appeared in the 2015 Hall of Fame program.)
