Rick Seeley has been named as the head coach to usher in women’s hockey as a varsity athletic program at Clarkson.
Seeley, who has served as the head coach at Division III Manhattanville the previous three years, will lead the Golden Knights into Division I competition beginning with the start of the 2003-04 season.
The Green and Gold will compete as a member of the ECAC and will play a mixture of teams from the Division I and III levels during their inaugural campaign next season. This year, Seeley will concentrate on recruiting and laying the foundation for Clarkson’s newest varsity athletic team.
“I think Rick brings a level of professionalism and maturity on how to start up a program,” said athletic director Sean Frazier. “Rick brings a precise understanding of the game. More importantly he understands issues of higher education and the rigors faced by the student-athletes.
“Coming from a highly selective atmosphere at Manhattanville, the same way it is highly selective here at Clarkson with specializations in science and engineering, I think Rick will fit in nicely. He is going to be able to get it done, especially at the highest level.”
During his three seasons at Manhattanville (1999-02), Seeley guided the Valiants to a 54-16-4 overall record. Last season he led Manhattanville to a 23-2-2 record and into the NCAA Division III championship game, where the Valiants lost to Elmira, 2-1.
The only coach in the short history of the Manhattanville program, Seeley put together three tremendous recruiting classes and guided the program to national prominence in a very short period of time. The Valiants were ranked seventh in last year’s USCHO.com Division III Women’s National Preseason Poll and reached as high as the No. 2 position following their win over then
No. 1 Middlebury.
In the process, the Valiants ended Middlebury’s 136-game, seven-year winning streak over Division III opponents.
Seeley was named ECAC East Coach of the Year and was the runner-up as National Coach of the Year in 2002.
“We wish Rick the best in his future endeavors at Clarkson,” said Manhattanville athletic director Gail Lozado. “Rick did a remarkable job here from the inception of the program all the way to the national championship game last season. His enthusiasm and hard work made the program into one that should be extremely successful for years to come.”
