Chandler McCabe and Robert Morris women’s basketball have their first official new piece to the team, as the team announced this afternoon that Eddie Benton would be the assistant coach for the Colonials.

Benton previously coached locally for the last two seasons at Oakland Catholic. He was the 2022 WPIAL 5A Coach of the Year after taking his team to the WPIAL final and PIAA state semi-finals.

Benton has coached at the college level as well. The Pittsburgh native spent two seasons at Brown as an assistant before moving to Mississippi State in 2021 for another assistant coaching position.

Benton also coached at Cincinnati, LaRoche, St. Francis, and previously at RMU under former men’s basketball Head Coach Mark Schmidt. He has also previously served at Duquesne as a recruiting officer and assistant coach for the Dukes.

“Being a native of Pittsburgh, I’m extremely passionate about bringing great talent and a championship mentality back to the Moon Township community,” Benton said. “I am excited about the opportunity to work with Coach McCabe and help her rebuild the Robert Morris women’s basketball program,”

McCabe said of the hire, “Bringing Eddie on staff was a no brainer. He has college coaching experience at every level of Division I, is a Western PA guy through and through and a family man who cares first and foremost about our student-athletes. I am elated to welcome Eddie and his family to our program.”

Something to note with this hire is the reiteration of a local commitment McCabe, and the Colonials want to make. With this vacancy being open after former assistant and interim head coach Scott Schneider left, the spot was seemingly up for grabs to anyone.

But the hiring of not only a vastly experienced coach at all levels of College but also a most recently WPIAL head coach shows McCabe means business and is taking the recruitment of local players very, very seriously.