2023-24 MAAC Coach of the Year
2023-24 Maggie Dixon All-Met Coach of the Year
2023-24 ECAC Coach of the Year
2023-24 Kay Yow National Coach of the Year
2023-24 Kathy Delaney-Smith Mid-Major Coach of the Year Finalist
In just three years as Head Coach of the Stags, Carly Thibault-DuDonis has lifted the Fairfield University Women’s Basketball program to new historic heights and in the national conversation as one of the best mid-major programs in the sport.
During her tenure, the Stags have boasted back-to-back MAAC Championships and NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time in program history. Fairfield has also received votes in the Associated Press (AP) Top-25 poll in two-straight seasons, receiving a No. 25 overall ranking during the 2023-24 campaign.
Fairfield has also posted a 59-7 overall record during their last two MAAC Championship seasons, marking the second-best winning percentage in the country over that span. In MAAC play, Fairfield has tallied a 45-1 record which included a 42-game winning streak against conference opponents.
In just three seasons overall, “Coach Carly” has amassed a .771 winning percentage which ranks 14th among active Division I head coaches. Those victories include wins over 12 different conferences including the program’s first-ever win against a SEC school. The Stags have also posted victories against the: ACC, Big East, and Big Ten.
She has also mentored eight All-MAAC selections including three All-MAAC First Team selections, as well as the 2023-24 MAAC Player and Rookie of the Year.
During the historic 2023-24 season, Coach Carly guided the Stags to a program-record 31 wins which featured a 29-game winning streak, the second-longest in the country behind only No.1 South Carolina. Those victories included a perfect 23-0 record against MAAC opponents culminating in capturing the MAAC Championship trophy and automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
The success of the Stags was noticed around the nation as Fairfield earned their first-ever national ranking in the AP Top-25 poll as well as receiving votes in the USA Today Coaches Poll. They finished the year in the top-five nationally in the College Insider Mid-Major Poll.
Her historic success was recognized among her peers as she was unanimously selected the MAAC Coach of the Year as well as picking up accolades around the region and nationally. She was voted the All-Met Coach of the Year and the ECAC Coach of the Year as well as being picked the Kay Yow National Coach of the Year by College Insider, an award presented annually to the Division I women's head basketball coach who embodies a winning spirit while displaying great character, on and off the court.
She was also one of five finalists for the inaugural Kathy Delaney-Smith Mid-Major Coach of the Year after leading the Stags to a 16-win improvement from the prior season, ranking in the top-15 all-time in NCAA Division I history.
Among the historic 31 wins in 2023-24, the Stags won a nation’s best 15 road games including 14-straight which ranks in the top-20 in NCAA history.
In four seasons at Minnesota, Thibault-DuDonis brought three nationally-ranked recruiting classes to Williams Arena – including the first two five-star recruits in program history. On the court, she was integral in the development of All-Big Ten First Teamer and WNBA draft pick Kenisha Bell as well as All-Big Ten Second Team guards Sara Scalia and Destiny Pitts.
Her first foray into the Power 5 world brought Thibault-DuDonis to Mississippi State University, where the Bulldogs made back-to-back appearances in the NCAA National Championship Game and brought the first-ever SEC Regular Season Championship to Starkville. During her tenure on Vic Schaefer’s coaching staff, Thibault-DuDonis was the recruiting coordinator that secured the top two classes in MSU history. Charged with the development of the Bulldogs’ back court, Thibault-DuDonis worked alongside 2018 First Team AP All-American Victoria Vivians, who went on to be the eighth overall selection in the 2018 WNBA Draft by the Indiana Fever.
Prior to her time at Mississippi State, Thibault-DuDonis was on Head Coach Tory Verdi’s coaching staff at Eastern Michigan University from 2014-2016, during which time the Eagles made a pair of WNIT appearances as well as a trip to the 2015 Mid-American Conference Championship Game.
She began her collegiate career at Florida State University as Director of Recruiting Operations for Head Coach Sue Semrau in the 2013-14 season. In that role, she signed both the 11th-ranked high school recruit and the top-ranked junior college recruit in the nation to join the Seminoles. She also served as an Interim Assistant Coach for several months during that campaign.
A standout at East Lyme High School in Connecticut, Thibault-DuDonis played collegiately at Monmouth University. She earned All-Northeast Conference Third Team honors and was named the NEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year as a senior and helped the Hawks to a WNIT berth in her sophomore season. Thibault-DuDonis was the valedictorian of the Class of 2013 at Monmouth, graduating with a 4.0 GPA as a Psychology major with a double minor in Spanish and Health Studies.
Thibault-DuDonis married her husband Blake DuDonis in the summer of 2017. Her father Mike Thibault was a three-time WNBA Coach of the Year previously coachin the Connecticut Sun and Washington Mystics while also being an assistant coach in the NBA for the Los Angeles Lakers, Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks. Her brother Eric, is the current Head Coach of the Washington Mystics.
