Carthage assistant takes over at North Central (Ill.)

More news about: Carthage | North Central (Ill.)
Jul 16, 2018
Maggie McCloskey-Bax is staying in the CCIW but will sit on a different bench next season.
 Carthage athletics photo


North Central (Ill.) found its new head women's basketball coach on the bench of one of its conference rivals. Maggie McCloskey-Bax will take over the Cardinals' program after working as at Carthage the past five seasons.

The College's director of athletics Jim Miller announced the hire.

""Coach McCloskey-Bax brings a variety of experience to this position," said Miller in the release. "She was an outstanding local high school player at Riverside-Brookfield High School, played at the NCAA Division I level at Loyola University Chicago and has now coached at two NCAA Division III institutions."

McCloskey-Bax spent two seasons at Ohio Wesleyan University from 2011 to 2013 and then returned to Illinois to join Tim Bernero's staff at Carthage. She worked as Lady Reds' recruiting coordinator the past five seasons.

"The CCIW is such a competitive conference," said McCloskey-Bax in the release. "I learned so much from my years at Carthage from head coach Tim Bernero and also want to thank him for everything he has done for me. It's about recruiting high level kids and I know what it takes to compete in this conference, but being in the CCIW for the last five years will definitely be an advantage."

McCloskey-Bax will try to help the Cardinals bounce back from a difficult season in which they went 5-20, 3-13 in the CCIW. North Central previously ran a variation on Grinnell's System offense that emphasizes three-pointers, but moved away from it last season. 

She replaces Michelle Roof who stepped down as head coach in May. At the time of her decision Roof wrote via Twitter "While my journey at North Central has come to an end, I'm forever grateful to the players, parents, coaches and fans for making it such an incredible adventure. Leaving one "dream job" for another." Roof went 94-111 in eight seasons at North Central. Her most successful campaign came in 2014-15 when the Cardinals went 22-6 and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.