One of the best, most decorated basketball players ever will be calling Chicago home for the 2013-14 season.
Sheryl Swoopes, a four-time WNBA champion and three-time Olympic gold medalist, among other accolades, was named the head women's basketball coach at Loyola University Chicago, it was announced Friday by Assistant Vice President and Director of Athletics Dr. M. Grace Calhoun.
The formal announcement will be made at a press conference Monday morning on the Loyola campus.
Swoopes is in Connecticut this weekend fulfilling WNBA commitments, school officials said.
"We are thrilled to welcome Sheryl Swoopes to the Loyola family. She is a proven winner at every level of competition, and a respected mentor of young women. Beyond her unparalleled competitive success, her vision for Loyola women's basketball, knowledge of the game and industry, and infectious energy left us confident Sheryl will build Rambler women's basketball into a perennial national contender," Calhoun said in a statement.
Swoopes led Texas Tech University to the 1993 NCAA championship and was named Naismith National Player of the Year that season. She set an NCAA Championship game record with 47 points in Texas Tech's 84-82 victory over Ohio State in the 1993 NCAA title game.
Swoopes then had an illustrious professional career, which included stints primarily with the Houston Comets, and also the Seattle Storm and Tulsa Shock. She is a three-time WNBA MVP.
"I am extremely honored and humbled to be chosen to lead the Loyola University Chicago women's basketball program," Swoopes said in a statement. "Loyola is a special place and I immediately felt welcome here. Having played for some of the game's best coaches as well as with and against some of the most talented players in women's basketball history, I have broadened my knowledge and hope to use those experiences to bring championships to Rogers Park. There is a lot of talent already in place and I cannot wait to get into the gym and get started."
Swoopes, in 2011, announced she was engaged to a man, an announcement that surprised some as she had come out in 2005 and was in a lesbian relationship with then-partner Alisa Scott.
Swoopes talked exclusively to the Windy City Times after a WNBA game in 2006: http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/lgbt/Swoopes-Shoots-to-Win/11959.html
Swoopes was married from 1995-1999 and has a son.
In 2008, Swoopes appeared on Shirts & Skins, a reality TV show, and she mentored the San Francisco Rockdogs, a gay basketball team.
So how good was Swoopes as a player? Well, she was the first woman to have Nike basketball shoes named after her (Air Swoopes).
Swoopes was an assistant girls' basketball coach at Mercer Island High School in 2010 and most recently served as a television analyst for Texas Tech women's basketball games during the 2012-13 season.
The Ramblers went 17-15 this season, the most wins by the school since the 1988-89 season, including wins in 10 of its last 12 games.
Eric Simpson, who spent the last four seasons as the head women's basketball coach at Loyola, resigned March 18, the day after the team's last game.
"I think this was a great hire. Loyola is going to get a person that can really, really relate to people. Not only will Sheryl be an outstanding coach, but she is someone who can relate to the fan base. She's going to attract a lot of prospects and bringing Sheryl on board is not going to do anything but help give Loyola a chance to compete at a high level," Van Chancellor, the former Houston Comets head coach, said in a statement.
Marcia Hill, who ran the women's basketball league for the predominantly gay Chicago Metropolitan Sports Association (CMSA) for two years and is a CMSA Hall of Famer, heard of Swoopes' hiring Friday night and replied, "That's pretty cool that she's coming to Chicago. I'm glad to hear that. [Loyola] had a good team this year; I'll go to some of their games next season. I'm looking forward to seeing what Sheryl can do as a coach, enjoyed watching her as a player in both college and the WNBA."
Grete Hornstrom, 31, the commissioner of the recently-completely CMSA women's basketball league, added: "It's amazing we're getting such a big star and proponent of women's basketball in the city. She definitely will draw people to watch more women's basketball in the Chicago area."
Hornstrom lives in the South Loop and got engaged to her partner of four years, Chloe Williams, last weekend. "For the [Chicago] gay and lesbian community, it's great to have Swoopes here; she's someone visible and supporting [of the LGBT community], and a part of it at one point," Hornstrom said.
