July 16, 2007

NEWARK, NJ - Mary Kacic and Siobhan Kilkenny have been named assistant coaches for the New Jersey Institute of Technology women's basketball program, head coach Margaret McKeon announced.

Both assistant coaches have coached and played at the NCAA Division I level as they join the women's basketball staff headed by McKeon, who officially assumed the NJIT helm on July 1.

"Mary and Siobhan bring different skills to the table," said McKeon, who will lead NJIT in its second year of Division I competition, having previously been head coach at Boston University, which she led to the 2003 NCAA Tournament. "I feel very confident that this coaching staff will bring our program to new heights."

Mary Kacic comes to NJIT after a year as interim assistant women's basketball coach at Fordham in 2006-07. She previously coached two years at Division II Dowling (2003 to 2005), as well as serving as a head coach in the renowned Liberty Belles girls AAU program in 2003.

As a player, Kacic starred at Christ the King High, which ranked first in the nation by USA Today following her senior year (1998) and captured the New York State Federation crown all three of her varsity seasons. She was all-tri-state (NY, NJ, CT), all-city and all-Queens as a senior.

Kacic went on to play college ball at Manhattan, where she was a four-year member of the varsity and a two-year captain, while earning the 2002 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference/New York State Lottery Scholar Athlete of the Year.

She completed her playing eligibility at Dowling in 2003, helping the team to NCAA Division II tournament. Kacic earned all-conference and all-tournament honors, as well as all-region recognition from the Met (NY) Basketball Writers Association.

Siobhan Kilkenny was re-appointed to the new NJIT coaching staff after having been an assistant coach for two seasons on the previous staff headed by Kim Bowen-Lusk, who resigned following the 2006-07 season.

Kilkenny, a native of Ireland, where she is a member of the women's national team, was Most Valuable Player of the 2003 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament, where she helped her Manhattan team to the championship and a berth in the NCAA Division I tournament field. She was also second team all-MAAC that year, as well as all-Met Division I second team. After college, she played professionally for a year in Spain, before joining the Highlanders coaching staff at the start of 2005-06.

NJIT is tentatively scheduled to open the 2007-08 season on November 11 at St. Francis College of New York.

(photo courtesy Boston University Athletic Communications)