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| Hartwick was 19-8 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament this past season in its seventh season under Todd McGuinness. |
Case Western Reserve athletic director Amy Backus has announced the appointment of Todd McGuinness as the head men's basketball coach of the Spartans. McGuinness, who becomes the fourth head coach in the program's history, will start his duties with CWRU on Aug. 1.
McGuinness replaces Sean McDonnell, who resigned last month after compiling a 128-197 record in 13 seasons. The Spartans were 12-13 this past season.
"I would like to thank Case Western Reserve University, and especially Amy Backus, for this fantastic opportunity," said McGuinness. "I have had the good fortune of working here as an assistant coach and I know what an unbelievable university Case Western Reserve is.
"I always thought that if presented a chance to become the head coach at CWRU that it would be one of the best jobs in NCAA Division III," continued McGuinness. "I am looking forward to meeting the returning players and getting to work."
McGuinness, a Pittsburgh native, brings back with him 14 years of coaching experience at the Division III level, including the last seven as the head coach of Hartwick. While at Hartwick, he compiled a 114-72 overall record, good for a .613 winning percentage and the third-most wins by a head coach in the program's history. His teams qualified for the NCAA Tournament four times during his tenure and won three Empire 8 championships, the first in the program's history. McGuinness was named the Empire 8 Coach of the Year during the 2011-12 campaign, and coached his players to two conference player of the year awards, two conference rookie of the year honors, and two Empire 8 Tournament Most Valuable Player awards.
"I want to thank Todd for his seven years of service to Hartwick," said Hartwick athletic director Kim Fierke. "He has made a positive impact on our scholar-athletes and the competitiveness of the men's basketball program. He will be missed."
McGuinness will be returning to Case Western Reserve after serving a stint as the assistant coach of the varsity program and head coach of the junior varsity squad from 2006 through 2009. During his three seasons with the Spartans, he helped mentor University Athletic Association Rookie of the Year Kevin Herring in 2007-08 (just the second in the program's history), while the 2008-09 team recorded the most conference victories by a CWRU squad in nine seasons.
Prior to his time as an assistant at CWRU, McGuinness was an assistant coach at Vassar from 2004-06, and at Hartwick from 2003-04.
McGuinness played collegiately at Bethany, where he received his bachelor's degree in physical education in 2002. While at Bethany, he was a three-year starter and a two-year co-captain, leading the Bison to two Presidents' Athletic Conference Championships and an NCAA Tournament appearance in 2002.
"I am thrilled to welcome back Todd McGuinness as our new head coach of the Case Western Reserve University men's basketball team," Backus said. "Todd is a proven winner, a committed recruiter and outstanding individual. His appreciation for developing our student athletes both academically and athletically was very clear in the interview process.
"He understands the University Athletic Association and will hit the ground running. We are excited about the future of Spartan basketball under Todd's leadership."