Gannon University Athletics

Cleve Wright enters his 17th season overall as Gannon’s head women’s basketball coach in 2024-25, the sixth season of his second stint in Erie.

A coaching veteran of over three decades at both the NCAA Division I and II levels, Wright served as the Gannon women’s basketball head coach from 2002-13, before taking over as the head coach at NCAA Division I Miami (Ohio) from 2013-17 and as an associate head coach at NCAA Division I Eastern Illinois in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons.

Wright departed Gannon in April 2013 as the school’s all-time winningest basketball coach regardless of gender at the time. He has done nothing but add to that legacy since returning in 2019. After winning 233 games in 11 seasons in his first stint, he has gone 126-22 since returning to boost his record in 16 seasons at Gannon to 359-122. That’s an impressive .746 winning percentage. All told, Wright has a 394-209 record in 20 years as a head coach.

While winning has become the standard for Wright at Gannon, the 2023-24 campaign stands out as one of the best all-time. Minus three starters from 2022-23, the Golden Knights began the year unranked but made an early statement with three wins in the D2 CCA Tip-Off Tournament, two coming against nationally-ranked teams.

Gannon quickly jumped into the WBCA and D2CSC national polls. The Golden Knights climbed as high as second for three weeks in the WBCA Division II Top 25 and made it to third in the D2CSC poll while running off 21 straight wins. That is the second-longest winning streak in team history. Gannon's second place ranking was the highest attained by the Golden Knights since they were also second throughout the first half of the 2013-14 season.
 
The Golden Knights ended the year with a 35-3 record, winning the PSAC Championship for the third time in four years and advancing to the Elite Eight for the third time under Wright. The 35 wins were the second-highest season total. The Golden Knights made their sixth appearance in the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional in the last seven years.

After winning the PSAC West regular season title with a 21-1 record Gannon’s playoff run began with wins over Edinboro (70-42), then held off West Chester in the semifinals by a 79-73 score. In the finals the Golden Knights pulled away from Eastern Division champion Lock Haven 80-65 on the Bald Eagles’ homecourt.

Gannon entered the Atlantic Regional as the number one seed and began its journey to the Elite Eight with a 73-53 win over No. 8 West Virginia State. The semifinal game was a rematch with Lock Haven, but the result was the same as the PSAC title game, a 91-72 victory.
That left the Golden Knights facing third-seed Fayetteville State with a trip to the Elite Eight on the line. After a slow start it was all Gannon in front of a raucous crowd at the Hagerty Family Events Center. Gannon ran away for a 72-47 win.

Gannon entered the Elite Eight as the top seed but ran into an athletic Cal St. San Marcos team. In a game that went down to the wire Gannon’s season came to an end with an 85-80 loss in overtime, snapping an 11-game winning streak. Gannon ended the year fourth in the final WBCA Division II Top 25.

Wright was named the PSAC West Coach of the Year for the third time with Sam Pirosko and Bri Claxon earning first team All-PSAC West accolades.

In fact, senior standout Pirosko became the most decorated player in Gannon women’s basketball annals. She was selected the PSAC West Athlete of the Year for the second straight year, then went on to be a consensus first team All-American. Gannon’s all-time leading scorer was selected the WBCA Division II Player of the Year and the D2CCA Ron Lenz National Player of the Year. The Collegiate Women Sports Awards also selected her as the basketball finalist for the DII Honda Athlete of the Year award.

Academically, the College Sports Communicators voted her a first team Academic All-American for the second consecutive year, and she was named the CSC Academic All-America Team Member of the Year as the premier student-athlete in NCAA Division II women's basketball. She also received the Pete Nevins Scholar-Athlete Award recipient as the PSAC’s top scholar-athlete.

Wright’s 2022-23 squad finished with a 29-5 record, now the fourth-highest win total in school history. Gannon finished first in the PSAC West with a 19-3 league mark and reached the PSAC Championship game for the third straight year. He picked up career win number 300 at Gannon with a 63-44 win at UPR Rio Piedras over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Gannon came up just short of a third straight PSAC title following a 75-63 loss to California (Pa.) in the finals. Seeded second, Gannon dropped a 69-65 decision to Charleston (WV) in the Atlantic Regional. The Golden Knights ended the year ranked 21st in the WBCA poll and 22nd in the D2SIDA rankings. They climbed as high as eighth in the D2SIDA Div. II Top 25 and 14th in the WBCA Top 25.
Pirosko was named the PSAC West Athlete of the Year and Claxon was selected the PSAC West Freshman of the Year. Pirosko went on to earn second team D2CCA All-American accolades and was an honorable mention WBCA All-American for the second consecutive season. In addition, Wright’s daughter Emma Wright was recognized as the PSAC Women’s Basketball Champion Scholar for the second straight year.

In 2021-22 the Golden Knights battled a season of adversity due to injuries and COVID-19 to finish with a 24-7 record, climbing as high as seventh at one point in the WBCA Division II Top 25. Gannon turned in a dominant defensive effort in the PSAC Tournament, limiting three opponents to just 46.0 ppg., for a second straight PSAC Championship.

The Golden Knights ran away late for a 70-44 win over Pitt-Johnstown in a quarterfinal contest. They faced Kutztown, the PSAC East regular season champion and the host of the Final Four, in the semifinals. Gannon put the clamps on the Golden Bears for a 55-47 win. In the finals, Gannon faced the Western Division regular season champion California (Pa.). Just over a week earlier the Vulcans had defeated the Golden Knights at the Highmark Events Center to claim the regular season title. Gannon prevailed with the league crown on the line, 59-47.

The Golden Knights went into the Atlantic Regional at Glenville, W.Va. as the fourth seed. They faced a talented Shepherd team in the quarterfinals and would see their season come to an end in double overtime, 93-89.

Wright has led Gannon to the NCAA Tournament nine times, including five of the last six years. The Golden Knights have reached the PSAC Championship Game his last five years as Gannon’s coach. In 2009-10, Wright led Gannon to its first-ever PSAC title. In addition, his 2006-07 squad won the GLIAC championship and the 2004-05 team was the GLIAC runner-up. All told, Gannon has qualified for the PSAC Tournament eight of a possible nine years and made the GLIAC Tournament all six years under Wright.

Gannon has won 20-or-more games nine times in Wright’s 16 seasons at Gannon. That includes three 30-win campaigns. In addition to last year’s 35-3 finish, the 2009-10 Gannon edition finished at 37-1, reaching the NCAA Semifinals, and the 2012-13 Golden Knights were 31-5 and reached the Elite Eight. Six of Wright’s last seven Gannon squads won at least 22 games, interrupted only by a 13-1 finish in 2020-21 while playing an abbreviated schedule due to the pandemic.

In his first season back at the helm, Wright defied expectations with the 2019-20 team. Originally picked to finish sixth in the preseason polls, Gannon ended at 25-6 overall with an 18-4 PSAC record to earn the second seed in the PSAC Tournament. The team went on to win the program's second PSAC Championship and earn a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional.

Following wins over Edinboro and Shippensburg Gannon advanced to the PSAC title game, setting up a third meeting with Indiana (Pa.) on the Crimson Hawk’s homecourt. A defensive first half led to a 19-10 halftime deficit. Gannon came out of the break scoring 20 points in each of the final two quarters to upset seventh-ranked IUP, 50-40, for the program's second PSAC Tournament title.

The Golden Knights were set to host a portion of the NCAA Tournament’s opening rounds as the No. 2 seed in the Atlantic Region. The tournament was ultimately canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic ending the season prematurely.

Wright guided the Golden Knights to a 13-1 finish while playing a condensed, independent schedule in 2020-21. In a season interrupted by COVID-19, forcing a variety of cancellations, Gannon nonetheless prospered. Gannon climbed as high as tenth in the D2SIDA National Media Poll and rose to 17th in the WBCA poll on March 11, 2021. The lone loss was a 70-68 setback to 13th-ranked Daemen at the Highmark Events Center. Two days later, the Golden Knights returned the favor in Amherst, NY with a 65-56 victory.

Gannon players have received numerous conference and national honors during Wright’s reign. He has produced five players who have earned 12 All-American certificates, including Pirosko, who departed as a three-time WBCA All-American.

Christina Jackson was Wright’s first All-American, earning WBCA honorable mention honors in 2005 and again in 2007. Kristina Freeman followed as a two-time All-American with Division II Bulletin honorable mention accolades in 2009 and WBCA first team and Division II Bulletin second team in 2010. Brittany Tabron was an honorable mention selection on both teams in 2010, as well. Jen Papich followed in 2013 with honorable mention All-American recognition by both the WBCA and Division II Bulletin.

In addition, his Golden Knights have had the conference Player of the Year five times. In addition to two-time honoree Pirosko, Freeman was named the PSAC West Player of the Year in 2010 and Papich earned the same honor in 2013. Jackson was selected the GLIAC Player of the Year in 2007. Wright has had 30 All-PSAC performers and 14 All-GLIAC honorees.

As successful as Wright’s teams have been on the court, they have excelled even more in the classroom and in the community. During his first session coaching Gannon he introduced the Pink Zone game. The annual Pink Zone event began in 2008 to help local cancer survivors in their fight against cancer. The program raised nearly $150,000 since its inception, with funds that stayed entirely local. The Golden Knights were honored as the Outstanding Young Philanthropist by the American Fundraising Professionals (AFP) in 2011.

Upon returning to Gannon, Wright announced a set of charitable games to take place throughout the 2019-20 season. The inaugural Goals for Life game tipped off vs. Wheeling. The Knights partnered with Strong Vincent Middle School inviting over 800 students, faculty and staff. The Goals for Life Game was in partnership with Gannon's Erie-GAINS strategic partner to help better the neighborhood and community, while giving local students an education and fun trip out of the classroom.

Wright also introduced the SERVE Game. Gannon and students from six schools within the Erie Catholic School System partnered with the Inner-City Neighborhood Art House and the Sister Gus' Kids Cafe to help raise awareness and funds to help address the issue of youth poverty in the Erie Community. In the inaugural season, the women's basketball program and the six schools raised over 30,000 items for donation and $4,500.

The final game Wright introduced was the CARE Game, which replaced the annual Pink Zone Game. The only difference between the two games was the CARE Game looked to help all survivors of cancer rather than just breast cancer. Wright hopes to carry on the Pink Zone success in the coming years in the Highmark Events Center.

In the classroom, Gannon has traditionally ranked among the top teams in the country. While producing the best team grade point average in the PSAC during the 2011-12 season, Gannon was among the nation’s top 25 in team GPA during seven of his final eight years. The run included a No. 12 ranking in 2008-09 (3.497) and 2009-10 (3.491). In 2006-07, the Golden Knights achieved their highest national ranking ever, tabbed sixth with a 3.494 GPA. In 2019-20, Gannon compiled a GPA of 3.764 to rank seventh in the WBCA Academic Top 25. The honor came a month after the women's basketball team finished second in the PSAC in team GPA.

This past year, the Golden Knights posted a 3.434 team GPA. Emma Wright was named the PSAC Women’s Basketball Champion Scholar for the second straight year in 2022-23 and was an NCAA Woman of the Year nominee.

This past summer Wright was appointed to the WBCA National Board of Directors. It marks the second time Wright has served on the Board of Directors representing Division II. He was previously on from 2011-13. Wright is one of three Division II representatives on the board. In addition, Wright and assistant coach Brittany Batts were selected to work the prestigious College Basketball Academy.

During his first tenure, Wright took the Gannon women’s basketball program to heights unseen in school history. Prior to his arrival, Gannon had qualified for the NCAA Tournament four times in 28 seasons and had won only one NCAA postseason game during those trips.

Wright was named NCAA Division II National Coach of the Year and Atlantic Region Coach of the Year by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) in 2010 after the Golden Knights finished at 37-1. In addition, Wright is a four-time conference coach of the year. He has been named the PSAC West Coach of the Year in 2010, 2013 and 2024, while also earning the honor from the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) in 2007.

In 2009-10, Wright produced the most successful season in the history of the women’s basketball program. Gannon advanced to the NCAA Division II Final Four for the first time in school history. The squad broke the NCAA Division II record at the time for most victories (37) in a season and still holds the record for most consecutive wins (37) in a single season while ending the year at 37-1.

Along the way, the program won its first-ever PSAC Championship and first-ever NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional before a sold-out crowd at what was previously known as the Hammermill Center. The Golden Knights defeated their three opponents in the regional by an average of 21 points per game, defeating Millersville 65-48 to reach the Elite Eight. A 70-66 win over Tusculum advanced Gannon into the semifinals against Emporia State. The two played a classic game before Emporia State prevailed in overtime 97-94.

After climbing to number one in Division II for three weeks, the Golden Knights finished No. 2 in the final USA Today ESPN Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll.

Gannon concluded the 2012-13 campaign with a 31-5 record, representing the third-most victories in school history. The Golden Knights won the PSAC Western Division regular-season and the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional titles en route to the program’s second NCAA Division II Elite Eight appearance in the span of four seasons.

The season eventually came to an end against Ashland, 74-63, in the national quarterfinals, marking Gannon’s third straight NCAA Tournament appearance that ended with a loss against the eventual national champion. The Golden Knights ended the year sixth in the Division II Top 25.

After his successful run at Gannon, Wright spent four campaigns as the head coach at Miami (Ohio). The Redhawks ranked sixth among all NCAA Division I programs in team grade point average in 2017. He guided the Redhawks from 2013-17 and then served as an associate head coach at NCAA Division I Eastern Illinois in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons.

Wright has 35 years of college coaching experience, including three seasons (1999-02) as the top assistant at Division I Northwestern of the Big 10 Conference. The Women’s Basketball Journal named Wright one of the top 25 assistant coaches in Division I during the fall of 2002.

From 1997-99, he was an assistant coach in the Horizon League at Division I Butler. He then moved to Northwestern in 1999 after Butler coach June Olkowski accepted the head coaching job for the Wildcats.

Prior to coaching at Butler, Wright spent four seasons as the head girls’ basketball coach at Southwestern High School in Somerset, Kentucky. At Southwestern, Wright earned Commonwealth Coach of the Year honors and 48th District Coach of the Year accolades in 1997.

Wright began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Ball State from 1990-92. Prior to his coaching stint at Southwestern High School, he served as an assistant at Duke (1992-93) before joining Olkowski at Butler.

Wright received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1989 from Berea (Ky.) College. He was a two-sport athlete, competing in both basketball and track. As a student at Berea, he served as an assistant coach for the women’s basketball team after competing with the men’s team for one year. He went on to earn his master’s degree in Athletics Administration from Ball State in 1992.

He and his wife, Diane, reside in Fairview, Pa. and have two adult daughters, Chloe and Emma.