Mary McConnell, a native of Pawtucket, R.I., begins her seventh season on the Bryant bench in 2018-19 as an assistant coach.
In 2016-17, McConnell helped lead the Bulldogs to their best-ever Northeast Conference finish, reaching the conference finals where they fell to No. 1 Robert Morris. The 18-14 Bulldogs went 11-7 against conference foes, earning the No. 4 seed in the league tournament. The Bulldogs hosted and defeated No. 5 Mount St. Mary's in the NEC Quarterfinals, before defeating No. 2 Sacred Heart in the NEC Semifinals en route to the program's first-ever NEC Championship appearance as the unlikely No. 4 seed.
In the 2015-16 season, McConnell helped the Bulldogs back to the NEC Tournament after posting an 18-13 overall record and 14-4 conference mark, including a 10-0 start in league play, becoming one of only seven teams to reach the 10-0 tally in Northeast Conference history (29 years). The No. 2 Bulldogs took down No. 7 LIU Brooklyn, 70-56, in the NEC Quarterfinals, before No. 3 Robert Morris upset the Bulldogs, 72-59, for the third-straight year in the league semifinals.
During the 2014-15 season, McConnell helped the Bulldogs capture a share of the Northeast Conference Regular Season Title, the first in program history. The Black and Gold also tied the mark for the most wins in program history (22), set the program record for most Northeast Conference wins in a season (14), and the highest finish in the NEC standings in Bryant history (tied for first).
McConnell journeyed back to Smithfield following coaching stints at Rhode Island College, Fordham, Fairleigh Dickinson and, LIU Brooklyn.
One of Bryant’s all-time greats, McConnell played 116 games for the Bulldogs from 2000-04 and was a driving force behind one of the most successful teams of the Burke era. As a senior in 2003-04, she averaged 10.7 points per game and led the Black and Gold to a 22-9 overall record, including a run to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Division II tournament.
To get there, McConnell starred in a first-round upset over rival Bentley College, scoring 17 points and connecting on a season-high five 3-point field goals. She followed the outing with an impressive 11-rebound performance in a regional semifinal victory over Stonehill College.
With 1,182 career points, McConnell ranks 11th all-time in the program record books and owns the second-best single-game free throw percentage with a .909 mark set in both 2002 and 2003. She concluded her career shooting .709 (249-351) from the free throw line and earned Third Team All-Northeast-10 Conference honors as a senior.
Prior to arriving at LIU Brooklyn, where she spent last season on the Blackbirds coaching staff, McConnell was an assistant at Fordham University in 2010-11, working primarily with the Rams’ guards while also assisting in the team’s recruiting, scheduling and scouting, as well as overseeing the team's NCAA compliance.
For three seasons before arriving at Fordham, she handled similar duties at fellow Northeast Conference school Fairleigh Dickinson, along with handling all FDU women’s basketball summer camps and operational budgets.
Upon graduating from Bryant in 2004 with a degree in business management, McConnell joined the women’s basketball coaching staff at nearby Rhode Island College before serving as a graduate assistant coach at Providence College from 2005-07. She received her Master of Education in Counseling from Providence in 2007.
