The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Demons star Swanson Haan to coach girls basketball
A Westlake legend is returning home.
On April 4, Westlake Athletic Director Tony Cipollone announced that Karen Swanson Haan would become the school’s next girls basketball coach, pending board approval.
A 1999 graduate, Swanson Haan was a threesport standout for the Demons during her high school days. She played volleyball, basketball and softball and was named the Southwestern Conference MVP during her junior basketball season.
She was inducted into the Westlake Hall of Fame in 2017.
“Having Coach Swanson Haan, a WHS Hall of Famer, return to her alma mater is such a great
story, but more important was her vision of what this girls’ basketball program can be and where she plans to take it,” Cipollone said in a news release. “Her passion for transforming our female student-athletes into the leaders of tomorrow is what really drew us to her. Her life experiences are going to be invaluable to our players as she shares her knowledge of basketball and of life.”
Swanson Haan, who was an assistant varsity and head JV coach for Division II state runner-up Gilmour last year, brings not only her Westlake experience back to her alma mater, but also a standout college career for Notre Dame, which includes a 2001 NCAA National Championship.
“We are so excited to get a person of her caliber to be a role model, not only to our basketball team but to all of
our female students,” Cipollone said.
Swanson Haan is just as excited to be returning to Westlake.
“I am excited about the opportunity to return to my alma mater, a place that shaped me and helped me grow, not only to coach but to have a positive impact on players’ lives,” Swanson Haan said. “I believe that the Demon fans will love our style of play and that my passion for the game of basketball, for my players, for the entire program from K-12, and my love of the Green and White will show through on a daily basis. I also have some unfinished business from my playing days as our teams fell short of winning an SWC Championship. It is my goal to not only put those numbers on our banner in the gym but to put up banners for district, regional and state titles. I will work tirelessly to make Westlake one of the premier girls’ basketball programs in the state.”