Clarion Athletics

PA Sports Hall of Fame - Western Chapter Inductee
2005 Russell Athletic/WBCA Region 2 Coach of the Year
1991 Converse District 2 Coach of the Year
4-time PSAC-West "Coach of the Year" (2008, 2005, 1992, 1991)
 
Margaret "Gie" Parsons, a member of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame - Western Chapter, begins her 25th year as Clarion's head coach and her 33rd season overall as a head coach.

Parsons almost immediately vaulted Clarion's program into national prominence going two a pair of NCAA Division II Elite Eights in her first five seasons as the Golden Eagles head coach while taking Clarion to six NCAA Division II playoff berths, five PSAC West titles, three PSAC titles and 12 PSAC playoff berths in her 24 seasons. She won her 450th career game as a head coach last year (451-391) and needs nine wins to win her 350th game at Clarion.

One of a select number of Division II coaches with 400 career wins, Parsons is the winningest coach in school history with 341 Ws (341-321) and has been named the PSAC West Coach of the Year four times (1991, 1992, 2005, 2008), the Region/District 2 Coach of the Year twice (1991 - Converse District 2 Coach of the Year, 2005 - Russell Athletic/WBCA Region 2 Coach of the Year).

Elite Eight appearances for Clarion under Parsons came in 1991 and 1994, while PSAC titles occurred in 1991, 1993 and 1994 with the Golden Eagles also winning five straight PSAC West titles from 1991-95. She was inducted into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame – Western Chapter May 7, 2011.
 
From 1991-95, Gie led Clarion on an unbelievable ride that saw the Golden Eagles go 117-33 (78 percent) overall and 50-10 (83.3 percent) in the PSAC West with the five consecutive Western Division crowns, the three PSAC titles and the two Regional titles that earned Clarion berths in the Elite Eight. Clarion earned NCAA Division II playoff spots in all five of those seasons. The Golden Eagles were 24-8 in 1991, 25-4 in 1992, 24-6 in 1993, 26-4 in 1994 and 18-11 in 1995.
 
Under Parsons, the Golden Eagles went back to the NCAA postseason in 2005 when she guided Clarion to a 23-7 overall record and a 10-2 mark in the PSAC West. Additional top years for the Golden Eagles under Parsons include 18-9 in 2007 and 15-12 in both 2003 and 2004.
 
Parsons came to Clarion from Thiel College where she turned a losing program into annual winners. In her third year she led her 1984 team to an 18-6 slate, then a 22-2 mark, the PAC and WKC Conference titles in 1985.Named PAC Coach of the Year in 1985, Gie led Thiel back to the PAC Title in 1986 and was again voted Coach of the Year. Her 1987 squad was 18-6 and ranked 19th in D-III. In 1988, Thiel won the PAC and qualified for the D-III Playoffs with a 19-4 record, again voted PAC Coach of the Year. She was 110-73 in eight years at Thiel, including an amazing 97-46 mark her final six seasons. In Feb. 2007, Gie was inducted into the Thiel College Athletic Hall of Fame for her accomplishments as head coach.
 
A long-time member of the Women’s Basketball Coaches’ Association (WBCA), Parsons served on the WBCA Board of Directors from 2004-2010 and has been a conference captain since 2004 serving as chair of the conference captains in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2010 and presiding over the national Division II business meeting in 2005, 2007 and 2009. Prior to serving on the Board Directors, Parsons spent seven years on the national rules committee.  
 
A native of Monroeville, Pa., she graduated from Gateway High in 1967 and was a player/coach her senior year. Parsons attended Slippery Rock University and played for two seasons. Earning her B.S. Degree in HPE in 1971, she taught at Lakeview High and coached from 1971-74 then went to Australia and taught and coached at Doveton Technical School from 1975-77.She also spent three years (1977-80) teaching and coaching in New Zealand. Playing internationally those six years, she was a starter for the New Zealand Club Championship teams from 1977-79.
 
In 1980-81 she returned to SRU as a women's basketball G.A., went to Thiel in 1981-82, and was hired at Clarion on August 18, 1989. Parsons has extensive contacts in basketball and has traveled to at least 48 states in the U.S., plus internationally.