Hobart and William Smith Colleges Athletics

In April 2024, Seraphine Hamilton '06 was appointed the eighth head coach of the William Smith basketball program. She succeeds her former head coach and coaching mentor Lindsay Sharman, who stepped away from coaching after leading the Herons for 18 seasons.

In her second season in charge of the Herons, Hamilton led William Smith to a 4-21 overall record. The Herons went 2-16 in conference play, securing wins over Bard and St. Lawrence. Hamilton mentored eight Liberty League All-Academic selections and four CSC Academic All-Districts selections. She guided Amelia McCulley ’27 to USBWA Rochester Area Team honors as McCulley ranked fifth in the Liberty League in blocks, moving her into a tie for second on the program records list with 89 career blocks.
 
In her first year at the helm of the William Smith basketball team, Hamilton guided the Herons to a 3-22 record, including a 3-15 record in conference play. Her first win as a head coach came against RPI as William Smith defeated the Engineers 54-48 in Bristol Gym. Hamilton mentored 11 Liberty League All-Academic selections as well as four CSC Academic All-District members.

Hamilton was a two-sport athlete at William Smith, playing for both the basketball and soccer teams. In her time as a Heron, Hamilton led the basketball team to a 64-42 record, including back-to-back 20-win seasons, two Liberty League Championships and three postseason appearances, including a pair of NCAA tournament bids. On the pitch, she was a two-time NSCAA All-American defender, leading the Herons to a pair of NCAA soccer tournament appearances.

A 2022 Heron Hall of Honor inductee, Hamilton excelled in her athletic and academic pursuits. She earned the 2004 Hazel Nettleship Hardy '65 Award, the 2005 Susan Bassett Award, and the 2006 Marion Harrison Greene '20 Award.

After earning a bachelor's degree in Africana studies and English in 2006, Hamilton obtained a master's degree in African studies from Yale University. She returned to her alma mater as an assistant basketball coach from 2015-2017. In 2016, Sharman and Hamilton were named the Liberty League Co-Coaching Staff of the Year after guiding the Herons to a 17-9 record and the second seed in the Liberty League tournament.

"My time at William Smith (both as an athlete and a coach) was formative," said Hamilton. "I'm thrilled to fly back home to pay forward all of the meaningful mentorship that I've been gifted as a member of the community."

Since her time at William Smith, Hamilton has spent time as an educator and coach at the high school level. She was an English teacher, head varsity soccer coach and assistant varsity basketball coach at Newark Academy before accepting a new position at Princeton Day School where she spent the last five years as an upper school English teacher, the assistant varsity soccer coach, and the head varsity basketball coach. Hamilton also spent time on the Admissions Committee and was the Dean of the Class of 2024.