Sue Syljebeck
Head Coach

ssyljebe@sienaheights.edu

Sue Syljebeck enters her eighth season as the coach of the Siena Heights women’s basketball program. She has 92 wins at SHU, ranking her second behind Sr. Mary Alice Murnen (101).Last season, Syljebeck guided the Saints to 1n 11-19 overall record and 6-10 slate in WHAC play.

When joining SHU, Syljebeck had immediate success when she took over the Saints, leading them to their first winning season in five years with a 16-14 record.  After losing three starters from for 2004-05 squad, Syljebeck led a young team with a competitive schedule to six wins in her second season.

The turnaround continued, however, in her third season when Syljebeck led the team to an overall record of 17-13.  The 17 wins were the Saints’ best win total since the team won 27 games in 1978-79 and the second-highest in the program’s history. The Saints finished 7-7 in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference and in fifth place.

In her fourth season at the helm, Syljebeck led her team to another double-digit win total with a 14-16 record.  The 2007-08 team had no returning starters but still had a successful season without the benefit of experience.  In 2008-2009, Syljebeck hit double-digits in wins for the fourth time in five seasons with an 11-20 record.

The 2009-10 campaign once again saw the Saints reach 17 wins, tying the win total Syljebeck led the Saints to in 2006-07, once again, matching the highest win total since the 27 win team in the 1978-79 season.

Syljebeck has seen her win percentage and her career mark at Siena Heights move her up the ranks of coaches into second place in career winning percentage at .436.  She also holds the highest career conference winning percentage with .388. Her records at SHU at 92-119 overall and 38-60 in the WHAC

Syljebeck came to Siena Heights from a NCAA Division I school, Nicholls State University (La.).  At Nicholls State, she was the Associate Head Coach before being promoted to the Interim Head Coach during the 2003-04 campaign. Syljebeck has also coached at Southern Illinois and the New Orleans.

Syljebeck graduated from New Orleans in 1997 with her Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Human Performance and Health Promotion.  After a successful playing career, she then went on to receive her Master’s of Science degree in Physical Education from Southern Illinois in 2000.

Debrah Ray
Assistant Coach

Debrah Ray will enter her ninth season on the bench with the Saints.  She is a native of South Carolina where she played basketball at Clemson University.  She earned her Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Business Administration from Clemson.

As a Tiger, Ray earned the team’s Best Defensive Player Award as well as the Best Rebounder Award in her career. She also has professional basketball experience as she played in Venezuela for one year and was drafted by the Atlanta Peaches of the WBL.

Ray resides in Adrian with her husband Ben, and their three children, Christopher, Matthew and Jordan.

Sara Chrenko
Assistant Coach

Sara Chrenko will start her seventh season on the bench for the Saints. It is also Chrenko’s 11th season as a member of the program after a successful four-year playing career.

Chrenko has earned both her Bachelor’s of Arts Degree in Education as well as her Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership from Siena Heights.

Chrenko, who was a guard and a forward for the Saints during her playing career, also works in the admissions office at Siena Heights as an admissions representative. She currently resides in Adrian.

Laura Panozzo
Assistant Coach

Laura Panozzo enters her third season on the bench with the Saints. 

Perhaps the best player to ever don the Siena Heights uniform, Panozzo stands alone as the only player, male or female, to have more than 1,800 points and 1,000 rebounds.

Panozzo graduated in 2007 with her degree in sport management.

She was a forward and is tied for SHU single-season records in field goals (213) and field goals attempted (415). She also holds Siena Heights career records in points (1,812), field goals (715), field goals attempted (1,603), points per game (15.10) and rebounds (1,099).

Erin Cassidy
Assistant Coach

Erin Cassidy has joined the Saints’ bench as an assistant coach. She is also the head coach of the SHU junior varsity team.

Last year, Cassidy helped out as a volunteer assistant to the SHU junior varsity women’s basketball team in 2010-11.

Prior to coaching, Cassidy donned a Siena Heights jersey on the court. She was a four-year post player who totaled 800 points and 569 rebounds during her four years.

Cassidy graduated in May 2011 with a Bachelor’s of Arts degree in special education and early childhood development. She is currently working toward a Master’s degree in Organizational Leadership.