DeVarney Named New Garnet Head Coach
Swarthmore College has announced Renee DeVarney, current head coach at W.T. Woodson High School in Fairfax, VA, has been named head women's basketball coach.
"The Department of Athletics is very excited to have [DeVarney] on board," said Adam Hertz, Director of Athletics at Swarthmore. "We feel her understanding of competitive athletics within the framework of an academic institution will further the success of the Swarthmore women's basketball program."
DeVarney, former head coach at Duquesne University (PA) and assistant coach at the College of William and Mary (VA), replaces Adrienne Shibles, who resigned after nine seasons to become the Associate Athletic Director at Gould Academy in Bethel, ME.
"The blend of great academics and competitive basketball attracted me to Swarthmore, " said DeVarney. "I love being around the type of highly motivated students who enjoy a challenge. I look forward to competing for the Centennial Conference Championship each year and going to the NCAA Tournament."
In her four-year tenure at Woodson, DeVarney, a three-time Women's Sports Foundation High School Coach of the Year in northern Virginia, captured a pair of Liberty District Championships while compiling a record of 86-23. In 2004-05, DeVarney led Woodson to a 26-5 record, a No. 17 ranking in the Washington Post's Girls Basketball Poll, and a spot in the state semifinals. She also taught astronomy and advanced placement physics at Woodson.
DeVarney's success in Virginia extended beyond the high school season. In the summer of 2003, her first season coaching on the AAU circuit, DeVarney led the Fairfax Stars to the 15-and-under National Championship in Virginia Beach, VA. In May 2004, DeVarney was selected by USA Basketball to be an assistant coach for the Olympic Youth Development Team.
Prior to Woodson, DeVarney accrued an impressive list of coaching credentials, dating back to her first job as an assistant at the United States Military Academy from 1986 to 1988. DeVarney followed her stay at Army with jobs at the University of Iowa (1988-89), Duquesne (1989-93), West Virginia University (1996-99), and William and Mary (1999-00).
DeVarney is the director of the Aspire Higher Basketball Camp held at Woodson, the largest high school camp based in Virginia. Prior to starting her own camp, DeVarney was the lead post coach at the Duke University Elite Camp in 2001 and 2002.
DeVarney graduated from the University of Vermont with a Bachelor of Arts degree in physics in 1985. She was a four-year letter-winner, playing guard for the Catamounts, and still ranks in the school's top 20 all-time in steals and free throws. DeVarney received her teaching certificate at George Washington University in 2001.
The Swarthmore basketball program has been very successful over the past five years, winning 97 games and making four appearances in the Centennial Conference playoffs, including winning the 2001 Centennial Conference Championship and advancing to the NCAA Tournament under Shibles.