DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) – The College of St. Scholastica announced on Friday that Jason Schmitz will lead the Women's Basketball program as its next Head Coach.
 
Schmitz becomes the program's eighth head coach as he replaces longtime coach Stacy Deadrick, who transitioned to an administrative role in the athletics department in July.
 
"I'm incredibly excited to join the St. Scholastica family," said Schmitz. "I want to thank Athletic Director Merissa Edwards and the rest of the selection committee for giving me this opportunity to lead the program as we transition into the MIAC. Coach (Stacy) Deadrick did a tremendous job leading this program and it is an honor to take over after her historic career."
 
Schmitz comes to CSS after spending the last three seasons as the head women's basketball coach at NCAA Division III Centenary College (La.). In three seasons at Centenary, he led the program to its most conference wins since the 1982-83 season and recruited the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) Newcomer of the Year.

"While it was sad to say goodbye to my basketball family at Centenary, I look forward to getting to know the players and coaching staff at CSS," said Schmitz. "I look forward to recruiting to a tremendous institution and to the city of Duluth. With a history of both academic and athletic success, I truly believe this institution has what it takes to build a consistently competitive program in one of the best conferences in the country. I look forward to getting to work, October 15th can't get here soon enough!"
 
Prior to Centenary, Schmitz was an assistant on the women's staff at his alma mater the University of Mary (N.D.) for four seasons. While at Mary, he recruited and coached five Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) All-Conference selections, one NSIC Freshman of the Year, one DII Bulletin All-Freshman Team selection and two WBCA All-American Honorable Mention selections.
 
"Coach Schmitz is going to be a great addition to our athletic department," said Interim Director of Athletics Merissa Edwards. "He provides years of experience coaching women's basketball and I look forward to watching him elevate our women's basketball program in the MIAC."
 
Schmitz graduated from Mary in 2008 with a degree in Social Behavioral Science Education. He went on to earn his Masters in Secondary Education at Worcester State College (Mass.).
 
The Saints are scheduled to open their season November 10 at former conference foe Crown College.