Rider University :: newswire@Rider :: NAlumna Milligan Returns to Rider as Head Coach

Alumna Milligan Returns to Rider as Head Coach

(left to right) Coach Lynn (Donavan) Milligan and Don Harnum

Lynn (Donavan) Milligan ’92 has returned to her alma mater to become the new head coach of the Rider University women’s basketball team, and she’s ready to hit the ground running.
“We will attempt to outwork our opponents every day in the classroom, in the community, and on the basketball court,” Milligan said.

Milligan comes to Rider from Saint Joseph’s University where she served as an assistant coach for six years, the last two as the top assistant. The Saint Joseph’s Hawks earned a berth in the WNIT five times in the last six seasons.

“I am extremely excited to welcome Lynn back to Rider University as the head women’s basketball coach,” said Donald Harnum, Rider’s athletic director. “I am very confident that as an alum and someone who has 15 years of college coaching experience with successful programs, Lynn is the right person to lead the renewal of the women’s basketball program.”

“Returning to Rider is a dream come true,” said Milligan, a 1992 graduate of Rider, where she was a two-sport stand out in basketball and softball. “I am thrilled to be coming home to a place that is so special to me and to have the opportunity to lead the women's basketball program into the future.”

At Saint Joseph’s, Milligan was directly responsible for recruiting and guard play for a program that compiled 111 wins in the last six seasons. Three of her last five recruiting classes were nationally ranked. She assisted with all aspects of the Hawks’ program, including on-court instruction, scouting, game-plan preparation, academic support and fundraising.

“She has the necessary knowledge of the game, the ability to teach and connect with student-athletes, and the energy and relationships in recruiting to be successful,” Harnum said. “Her passion for Rider and her dedication to the development of the total student-athlete came through loud and clear during the interview process and will be a tremendous asset for Rider University.”

At Rider, Milligan earned a bachelor’s degree in communication and earned a master’s degree in counseling in 1994. The 1992 Rider basketball team was the most successful in 10 years when Milligan was a senior and went 9-3 in the East Coast Conference. In her two seasons as a Rider graduate assistant coach, the Broncs were a combined 35-20, including a 25-11 record in the Northeast Conference.
Also a three-year member of the Bronc softball team, Milligan collected more than 100 career hits in just three seasons and helped lead the team to the 1990 East Coast Conference Championship as the team’s leading hitter and to the 1991 Eastern College Athletic Conference Championship.

Prior to joining Saint Joseph’s, Milligan spent the previous six years as the top assistant coach at Drexel University. In her final season, she helped guide Drexel to a 19-10 record overall and a 13-5 mark in the America East Conference, tying for second place and advancing to the semifinal round of the league tournament. Before Drexel, she served for one year as an assistant coach at Central Connecticut State.
A native of Voorhees, Milligan is a member of Eastern High School’s Athletic Hall of Fame. She is also an active member of the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association.

Milligan replaces Tori Harrison, who compiled a three-year record of 14-73 at Rider and did not seek reappointment this year. “We have a lot of work to do and I am anxious to get started,” Milligan said.