Women's Basketball
Schweyen, Shannon
Shannon Schweyen
- Title:
- Head Coach
- Email:
- schweyensm@mso.umt.edu
- Phone:
- 243-5338
The 2019-20 season is Shannon Schweyen’s fourth year as head coach at Montana and 28th year on staff. She was named longtime coach Robin Selvig’s successor on Aug. 10, 2016, after working under Selvig for 24 years as an assistant.
Montana went 531-203 with Schweyen as an assistant coach while winning 14 Big Sky Conference regular-season titles and advancing to 13 NCAA Tournaments. As a head coach, Schweyen has a three-year record of 35-56.
The Lady Griz went 7-23 in Schweyen’s first year as head coach in a season marked by setbacks. The team lost Kayleigh Valley, the preseason Big Sky Conference Player of the Year, to a season-ending knee injury the first week of practice and Alycia Sims to the same injury in the season’s first game.
Having to rely largely on freshmen and other inexperienced players, Montana played its best basketball late in the season, winning four of its final seven regular-season games.
The team’s top five scorers were true or redshirt freshmen, its top seven scorers were underclassmen, and freshmen made more than 67 percent of the team’s starts.
Montana again lost Valley to the same injury, this time for good, early in the 2017-18 season, not long after she was voted preseason Big Sky Conference Player of the Year for the second year in a row.
But this time the Lady Griz were more prepared to handle it. After opening 0-5, Montana went 11-4 in December and January, and won twice as many games as the season before, going from seven wins to 14.
Montana won its first Big Sky tournament game under Schweyen, defeating Sacramento State in Reno in the opening round, before falling to tournament champion Northern Colorado in the quarterfinals.
Montana repeated with 14 wins in 2018-19, a campaign that included four more season-ending injuries to key players, and tied for sixth in the Big Sky, its best league finish since 2015-16.
A Kodak All-American as a player for the Lady Griz (1988-89 to 1991-92), Schweyen joined the UM coaching staff as a student assistant in 1992-93 and was appointed to a full-time assistant position prior to the 1993-94 season.
As a player, Schweyen led Montana to four NCAA tournaments, three Big Sky Conference regular-season titles and a record of 103-18. As a coach, she has been a part of 13 more NCAA tournament teams, 14 Big Sky regular-season titles and 566 victories.
After earning honorable mention All-America honors as a sophomore and junior, the former Shannon Cate became the Big Sky Conference’s only first-team Kodak All-American as a senior in 1991-92. That honor was recognized in 2014 as No. 3 on the list of “25 Greatest Women’s Moments” in Big Sky history.
Not long after that honor was announced, Schweyen was voted No. 1 on the list of “25 Greatest Female Athletes” following a yearlong countdown to commemorate 25 years of women’s athletics in the Big Sky Conference.
She capped her All-America season and career by scoring 34 points to lead No. 11 Montana to an 85-74 upset victory at No. 6 Wisconsin in the 1992 NCAA tournament.
Schweyen was a two-time Big Sky MVP, a three-time Big Sky tournament MVP and a three-time Lady Griz MVP. She also was a four-time Academic All-Big Sky selection.
Schweyen finished her career as the Big Sky’s leading scorer among both men and women with 2,172 points. She still owns numerous school and Big Sky Conference records after averaging 18.7 points, 7.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game for her four-year career.
Schweyen, who had her No. 21 jersey retired following her collegiate career and was inducted into the Grizzly Sports Hall of Fame in 1998, played professionally in Spain briefly in 1992 before returning to Montana to join the Lady Griz coaching staff.
Schweyen was a three-time state tournament MVP at Billings Central High School and was the Gatorade Montana Player of the Year in 1988.
She received a bachelor’s degree in business administration from UM in 1993.
She is married to Brian Schweyen, a former Big Sky Conference high jump and pole vault champion for Montana State and the current head track and field coach at Montana. They have three daughters, Jordyn, Shelby and Sheridan.
Montana year-by-year under Schweyen
2016-17 ... 7-23, 4-14 BSC (11th) ... Lost in first round of Big Sky tournament
2017-18 ... 14-17, 9-9 BSC (t-7th) ... Lost in quarterfinals of Big Sky tournament
2018-19 ... 14-16, 9-11 BSC (t-6th) ... Lost in first round of Big Sky tournament
Montana went 531-203 with Schweyen as an assistant coach while winning 14 Big Sky Conference regular-season titles and advancing to 13 NCAA Tournaments. As a head coach, Schweyen has a three-year record of 35-56.
The Lady Griz went 7-23 in Schweyen’s first year as head coach in a season marked by setbacks. The team lost Kayleigh Valley, the preseason Big Sky Conference Player of the Year, to a season-ending knee injury the first week of practice and Alycia Sims to the same injury in the season’s first game.
Having to rely largely on freshmen and other inexperienced players, Montana played its best basketball late in the season, winning four of its final seven regular-season games.
The team’s top five scorers were true or redshirt freshmen, its top seven scorers were underclassmen, and freshmen made more than 67 percent of the team’s starts.
Montana again lost Valley to the same injury, this time for good, early in the 2017-18 season, not long after she was voted preseason Big Sky Conference Player of the Year for the second year in a row.
But this time the Lady Griz were more prepared to handle it. After opening 0-5, Montana went 11-4 in December and January, and won twice as many games as the season before, going from seven wins to 14.
Montana won its first Big Sky tournament game under Schweyen, defeating Sacramento State in Reno in the opening round, before falling to tournament champion Northern Colorado in the quarterfinals.
Montana repeated with 14 wins in 2018-19, a campaign that included four more season-ending injuries to key players, and tied for sixth in the Big Sky, its best league finish since 2015-16.
A Kodak All-American as a player for the Lady Griz (1988-89 to 1991-92), Schweyen joined the UM coaching staff as a student assistant in 1992-93 and was appointed to a full-time assistant position prior to the 1993-94 season.
As a player, Schweyen led Montana to four NCAA tournaments, three Big Sky Conference regular-season titles and a record of 103-18. As a coach, she has been a part of 13 more NCAA tournament teams, 14 Big Sky regular-season titles and 566 victories.
After earning honorable mention All-America honors as a sophomore and junior, the former Shannon Cate became the Big Sky Conference’s only first-team Kodak All-American as a senior in 1991-92. That honor was recognized in 2014 as No. 3 on the list of “25 Greatest Women’s Moments” in Big Sky history.
Not long after that honor was announced, Schweyen was voted No. 1 on the list of “25 Greatest Female Athletes” following a yearlong countdown to commemorate 25 years of women’s athletics in the Big Sky Conference.
She capped her All-America season and career by scoring 34 points to lead No. 11 Montana to an 85-74 upset victory at No. 6 Wisconsin in the 1992 NCAA tournament.
Schweyen was a two-time Big Sky MVP, a three-time Big Sky tournament MVP and a three-time Lady Griz MVP. She also was a four-time Academic All-Big Sky selection.
Schweyen finished her career as the Big Sky’s leading scorer among both men and women with 2,172 points. She still owns numerous school and Big Sky Conference records after averaging 18.7 points, 7.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game for her four-year career.
Schweyen, who had her No. 21 jersey retired following her collegiate career and was inducted into the Grizzly Sports Hall of Fame in 1998, played professionally in Spain briefly in 1992 before returning to Montana to join the Lady Griz coaching staff.
Schweyen was a three-time state tournament MVP at Billings Central High School and was the Gatorade Montana Player of the Year in 1988.
She received a bachelor’s degree in business administration from UM in 1993.
She is married to Brian Schweyen, a former Big Sky Conference high jump and pole vault champion for Montana State and the current head track and field coach at Montana. They have three daughters, Jordyn, Shelby and Sheridan.
Montana year-by-year under Schweyen
2016-17 ... 7-23, 4-14 BSC (11th) ... Lost in first round of Big Sky tournament
2017-18 ... 14-17, 9-9 BSC (t-7th) ... Lost in quarterfinals of Big Sky tournament
2018-19 ... 14-16, 9-11 BSC (t-6th) ... Lost in first round of Big Sky tournament
Griz TV Live Stream
Monday, September 15
UM vs UND Highlights
Monday, September 15
Griz Soccer vs. Nevada Postgame Report - 8/31/25
Friday, September 12
Griz Soccer Weekly Press Conference - 9/8/25
Friday, September 12
