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Former Monessen star Charel Allen comes full circle, joins Notre Dame coaching staff

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Thursday, July 21, 2022 | 2:10 am


After spending five years on the west coast, Charel Allen returns to his alma mater.

Allen, from Monessen and the second top scorer in WPIAL history, was appointed as an assistant coach at the University of Notre Dame on Wednesday.

As a Fighting Irish player since 2004-08, Allen has been two All-American, two-time First Team All-Big East Selections, and Team Captain in the last two seasons. Allen scored an average of 17.0 points for the team and achieved 6.2 rebounds as a junior. He then led Ireland to Sweet 16 Bath in his senior years, winning Oklahoma overtime in the second round and scoring the highest 35 points in his career. At the NCAA tournament.

“I’m excited to bring Charel back to the University of Notre Dame,” Fighting Irish head coach Niele Ivey said in a press release. “Charel brings a high level of mentality that leads to the development of great players. She has college, professional and international experience at all levels. She is a rising star in the industry. She is very passionate and loyal and understands what it takes to be a good student athlete at the University of Notre Dame. “

Allen was the first player in Notre Dame’s history to score 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, 200 assists and 200 steals. In fact, she is still ranked 15th on the highest scoring list ever with 1,566 career points.

“When Coquese (Washington) got a job at Rutgers, I contacted Neil Coach (Ivy). Returning to Notre Dame was always on my radar, and I also on their radar. I think it was, “Allen said. When she said “yes” to Notre Dame at the age of 16, it was just me. Teens thought I knew everything about life. As I grow older, I have the opportunity to understand how important that decision was and now pay homage to the university I called my hometown.

“I am grateful for the opportunity to work with such a strong leader of Neil and her staff.”

Allen started running with Fighting Irish and interviewed him between flights on the Recruit Trail to Richmond. She also travels to Minnesota, Orlando and New Orleans.

“It’s very exciting and I’m very happy to understand it correctly,” Allen said. “This is our evaluation period when all these AAU tournaments are taking place. We are excited to offer players the same opportunities as when they chose Notre Dame University.”

Allen, celebrating her birthday on Saturday, was selected by Sacramento Monarch in the third round of the 2008 WNBA Draft to help the team advance to the 2008 WNBA Playoffs.

In 2009, Allen made a leap abroad and played professionally for eight seasons in Bulgaria. In addition to being selected for the First Team Selection of the All Bulgarian League four times, Allen is a five-time Bulgarian League Champion and was named the Player of the Year in 2014.

In the summer of 2017, Allen moved to Coaching Rank and joined the staff at California State Fullerton. He was then promoted to associate the head coach with the Titans in May 2021.

“Winning and losing wasn’t where we wanted, but during my time there we’ve grown a lot,” Allen said. “I love being able to bring my knowledge of the game back to Notre Dame. I learned a lot here, at the WNBA, as a player abroad and now as a coach for five years.”

Another advantage of this move is that the drive is much shorter when Allen feels he needs to return to Montvalley.

“I was away for a long time,” she said. “I went to Notre Dame in 2004 and then to Sacramento abroad. I came back and went to California. I was able to drive for just 6 hours and returned to Monessen so I knew about my family and I’m very grateful. I’m old, but my parents, siblings, and grandparents are also old. It’s great to have the opportunity to spend holidays and birthdays with my family. “

With Allen returning to Fighting Irish, her life went around. Not bad for her decision at the age of only 16. It shows that young people can make good decisions for themselves as their commitment to college continues to occur at a young age.

“I’ve seen growth in all these AAU tournaments and travel sports,” she said. “Young people can make the right decisions themselves. When I committed, I made the final decision. If the right people around you provide you with the right information, You can make the right decisions. After all, you can only play in one school. “

Allen, who played for Major Corey and legendary Irish coach Muffet McGraw in Monessen, said she would occasionally continue to talk to all her coaches. She carries their teachings with her every day as she learns from her work.

“Please rest in peace with Taffy,” Allen said. “I’m still talking to all the coaches for years. They’re always very supportive. It’s funny because I always ask them,” Was I a player of this kind? ” is. Or “Did I do this?” They have seen a lot in their year. Players and games are evolving, so I will always keep learning.

“But taking this opportunity to go around completely is a real dream come true for me.”

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