Amy Mallon, a fixture on Drexel’s bench for the past 19 seasons, agreed to terms on Friday, March 27, 2020 to become the head women’s basketball coach at Drexel University. Mallon became just the sixth head coach since the school became a Division I member.
Mallon coached the Dragons to it's 11th straight winning season after posting a 17-13 record, tying for third in the regular season in the Coastal Athletic Association with a 12-6 tab in conference play. Led by First Team All-CAA honoree Amaris Baker, Drexel clinched the fourth seed of the CAA Tournament and received a double-bye to the CAA Quarterfinals. Baker, who led the CAA in scoring with 17.1 points per game. Joining Baker in the conference’s postseason accolades was transfer Deja Evans, who was a defensive powerhouse for the Dragons. Evans finished the season with 66 blocks and propelled herself into the Drexel record book now ranked seventh all-time in blocks. The Dragons defeated La Salle on Nov. 13, 73-40 to earn the program its first victory as members of the Philadelphia Big 5. The home game was one of the 12 home games that Drexel won during the season, marking a 12-2 record inside the Daskalakis Athletic Center. In Drexel’s game against North Carolina A&T on January 17, Cara McCormack scored the 1000th point of her career. Academically, the Dragons finished with a 3.69 team GPA and had four Dragons finish with a 4.0 and a spot on the Dean’s List. Iriona Gravely, Molly Lavin, Laine McGurk and Mariah Watkins all finished with straight A’s.
The Janet E. & Barry C. Burkholder Family Head Women’s Basketball Coach pieced together a historic fourth season for Drexel in 2023-24. The Dragons finished the regular season by winning the final three games, including a home game against Campbell and road contests against North Carolina A&T and Elon. The Dragons entered the first CAA Tournament hosted in Washington, D.C. as the No. 7 seed and captured the program’s third CAA Title. The Dragons defeated No. 10 Delaware in the second round to advance to the quarterfinals, where they would have a postseason rematch, with the No. 2 Monmouth Hawks defeating them, 58-56, to earn a spot in the conference semifinals against Towson. In the semis, Drexel hit a buzzer-beater with three seconds remaining to down the Tigers and face the top-seeded Stony Brook. Mallon coached the team to its highest 3-point percentage game, defeating the Seawolves 68-60. Amaris Baker was selected as the CAA Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player after posting 19.8 points per game for the four-game stretch and was also selected to the All-Tournament team with Brooke Mullin, who scored 16 points against Stony Brook, and Chloe Hodges, who scored the game-winner against Towson to send Drexel to the championships. Drexel entered the NCAA Tournament as the 16th seed and played the top-ranked Texas Longhorns in Austin, Texas. Their trip to the NCAA Tournament pushed the program’s postseason streak to 10 years.
2022-23 saw Drexel maintain the program’s tradition of excellence with a sixth consecutive full season with 20 or more wins and the ninth straight year of a national postseason tournament. The Dragons were recognized on the national stage as Keishana Washington became the first WBCA All-American in program history, also earning All-America honors from the AP and WBCA. The CAA Player of the Year, Washington was one of two Drexel players to be considered at the top of her position by the WBCA as she was a finalist for the Ann Meyers Drysdale Shooting Guard of the Year and the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year. Maura Hendrixson was a top-10 finalist as the Nancy Lieberman Point Guard of the Year, finishing third in NCAA Division I in assists at 7.8 per game. Also recognized was Grace O’Neill who was on the CAA All-Rookie Team.
Her second season as the Dragons head coach was one for the record books. Mallon was named Colonial Athletic Association Coach of the Year as Drexel posted a program best tying 28 wins and had the fewest ever losses in DU women's basketball history with six, on its way to a CAA regular season championship and a trip to the WNIT Sweet 16. Along the way, Drexel posted its third longest winning streak in program history with a 14-game stretch that did not see the Dragons lose for 70 days. Drexel earned three spots on All-Conference teams with Keishana Washington garnering First Team honors along with Hannah Nihill and Tessa Brugler pulling in Second Team slots. Washington was the CAA Scholar Athlete of the Year and Nihill was tabbed for the All-Defensive Team. Washington was also one of only 13 players in Division I to score in double figures in every game she played this season (min. 25 games). The Dragons made sure they held on to the ball on offense, committing the third fewest turnovers in the country with 11.1 per contest and were fifth with a 1.47 assist -to-turnover ratio. Maintaining its defense first mantra, Drexel led the CAA and was in the top-30 nationally, allowing just 56.3 points per game. DU also showed its prowess in the classroom, posting a 3.54 team GPA during the spring term and Brugler was the first women's basketball team member in 20 years to earn CoSIDA Academic All-District honors.
In her first season as head coach of the Dragons, Mallon made a statement right from the start. Drexel competed to a 14-9 record in 2020-21 and made an improbable run to the CAA Championship. Mallon led the program to its first CAA title since the 2009 season and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament. With the standout victory over No. 1 seeded Delaware in the CAA Finals, Mallon became the first rookie head coach in more than 35 years to accomplish the feat. Mallon’s success in her inaugural season earned her All-Philly Co-Coach of the Year and a spot as a finalist for Spalding Maggie Dixon NCAA DI Rookie Coach of the Year, awarded to an NCAA DI head coach who demonstrated on-court success and enriched the lives of those around them. In addition to her own accolades, Mallon also mentored standout guard duo, Hannah Nihill and Keishana Washington. Nihill became the program's first ever CAA Defensive Player of the Year while Washington was named the CAA Tournament's Most Outstanding Player after producing back-to-back 30+ point performances to propel the Dragons to victory. After punching their ticket to San Antonio, Drexel entered the tournament as the 14th seed and drew No. 3 Georgia in the first round. Despite leading for most of the first half, the Dragons saw a late comeback by the Bulldogs to end their unforgettable season.
Mallon joined the Dragons in 2004 as an assistant coach before becoming the associate head coach in 2007. Charged with forging Drexel’s defense, Mallon galvanized DU into a formidable defensive adversary for opponents, pushing the Dragons to become one of the best defensive programs in the country.
Mallon played a significant part in seven 20-win campaigns during her time as a Drexel coach including five in the last six seasons. Drexel went 23-7 in 2019-20, capping off the conference schedule with a 16-2 record to claim the No. 1 seed in the Colonial Athletic Association Championships and a share of the conference's regular-season title. At one point during the CAA slate, the Dragons put together a 13-game winning streak, the third longest in program history.
Drexel has won three regular-season CAA titles with Mallon on the bench. Prior to this season, DU previously earned a share of the regular-season championship in 2017-18 and the outright title in 2008-09. The Dragons have made 10 postseason trips in the last 11 seasons including a 2009 NCAA Tournament appearance and nine WNIT bids with a WNIT Championship in 2013.
Mallon came to Drexel in 2004 after coaching stints at Saint Joseph’s University and Villanova University as a coach and assistant athletics director at Episcopal Academy in Merion, Pa. Mallon also enjoyed success as a professional, playing in the now defunct American Basketball League and in Luxembourg. Mallon also suited up for the Irish National Team during the 2001 European Championships. Her playing career has earned her numerous accolades including a 2002 induction into the Philadelphia Big 5 Hall of Fame and enshrinement in the halls of fame of Howard County Maryland and Mt. Hebron High School in Ellicott City, Md.
Her start in coaching came in 1994 when she took an assistant coaching position at Division III Rosemont College. After one season with the Ramblers, Mallon joined Villanova’s coaching staff and helped guide the Wildcats to a 21-8 record and a Big 5 Championship in the 1995-96 season. She returned to her alma mater, Saint Joseph’s, the following season and, as an assistant coach, helped bring the Hawks both Atlantic-10 and Big 5 titles after finishing with a 26-5 mark.
Mallon continued to produce championship teams as a coach when she took over as head coach at the prestigious Episcopal Academy in Merion, Pa. In addition to serving as head coach of the girls’ basketball and softball teams, Mallon also took on responsibilities as the assistant director of athletics. In her fifth season at the helm of the women’s basketball team, Mallon led Episcopal to a 17-6 record, one of its best finishes ever, and a trip to the Inter-Ac Championship game.
In her playing days, Mallon was one of the CAA’s all-time greats. She helped lead the Richmond Spiders to back-to-back conference championships in 1990 and 1991 and was named to All-Conference teams in both seasons and also made the CAA All-Defensive team in 1991. Mallon helped lead the Spiders to three consecutive postseason appearances, including two NCAA bids, and a 72-18 record during her three seasons with the team. Her experience as a member of one of the last teams to defeat Old Dominion in a conference tournament, proved to be a rallying point for the 2009 Drexel women’s basketball team when the Dragons upended the Lady Monarchs in the semifinals of the CAA Tournament, ending what had been a 17-year reign by ODU in conference tournament play. The 1990 Richmond women’s basketball team was recently inducted into the University of Richmond Athletics Hall of Fame in 2019 as a team of distinction.
Mallon transferred to Saint Joseph’s for her senior season in 1992-93 and put together one of the best single seasons in the history of Philadelphia Big 5 women’s basketball, leading to her induction into the Big 5 Hall of Fame in 2002. Mallon led the Hawks to a 21-8 record, a Big 5 Championship and was named the league’s Player of the Year after averaging a double-double for the season. She was also an All-Atlantic 10 First Team selection, a member of the Academic All-District Team and an Honorable Mention All-American.
After graduating from Saint Joseph’s with a bachelor’s degree in sociology, a master’s in health education and 1,384 career points on the basketball court, Mallon played professionally in Luxembourg for the DBBL’s Résidence de Walferdang franchise. When the American Basketball League was born, Mallon returned to Philadelphia to play for the city’s franchise, the Rage.
In addition to her on-court expertise, Mallon has played a pivotal role in the growth of the Drexel program internationally. Her recruiting efforts have helped to bring top-level talent to Drexel from around the globe. She was integral in the recruitment and coaching of Gabriela Marginean, a Romanian-native who was the 2009 CAA Player of the Year, a three-time First Team All-CAA selection, the league’s Rookie of the Year in 2006-07 and the first Drexel player to be drafted in the WNBA. In addition, her efforts have also helped to procure players hailing from Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, England, Ivory Coast, Lithuania, Slovakia, Spain and Sweden.
Mallon has had her finger on the pulse of collegiate women’s basketball for over two decades, playing as a Nike-sponsored athlete and working as a representative and consultant for the company from 1997-2001. She has been an ambassador for the game since her playing days, speaking at schools and clinics throughout the nation since 1993. Her passion for the game continues to inspire new generations of student-athletes to strive for success.
| Amy Mallon File |
| Coaching Career |
| 1994-95 |
Assistant Coach, Rosemont College |
| 1995-96 |
Assistant Coach, Villanova University |
| 1996-97 |
Assistant Coach, Saint Joseph's University |
| 1997-2004 |
Assistant AD/Basketball Coach, Episcopal Academy |
| 2004-2006 |
Assistant Coach, Drexel University |
| 2007-2020 |
Associate Head Coach, Drexel University |
| 2021-Pres. |
Janet E. & Barry C. Burkholder Family Head Women’s Basketball Coach, Drexel University |
| Year-By-Year |
| Head Coach - 82-40 (.672) |
| 2020-21 |
14-9 (8-6 CAA) |
CAA Champions, NCAA First Round |
| 2021-22 |
28-6 (16-2 CAA) |
CAA Regular Season Champions, WNIT Third Round |
| 2022-23 |
21-10 (13-5 CAA) |
CAA Regular Season Co-Champions, WNIT First Round |
| 2023-24 |
19-15 (10-8 CAA) |
CAA Champions, NCAA First Round |
| 2024-25 |
17-13 (12-6 CAA) |
|
| Postseason, Team and Player Awards as a Head Coach |
| NCAA Tournament Berths |
2 (2021, 2024) |
| WNIT Berths |
2 (2022, 2023) |
| CAA Tournament Championships |
2 (2021, 2024) |
| CAA Regular Season Championships |
2 (2022, 2023) |
| CAA Coach of the Year |
1 (2022) |
| All-Americans |
1 |
| CAA Player of the Year |
1 (2023) |
| CAA Defensive Player of the Year |
1 (2021) |
| CAA Scholar Athlete of the Year |
1 (2022) |
| Dean Ehlers Award Winner |
1 (2021) |
| CAA All-Conference |
10 (4 First Team) |
| CAA All-Tournament Team |
7 (2 Most Outstanding Player) |
| CAA Team Academic Awards |
4 (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024) |
| Academic All-Americans |
1 (2023) |
| Academic All-District |
10 |
