An Exton, Pa., native, John Dougherty is in his first season with West Chester as an assistant
coach. Prior to being with the Golden Rams, Dougherty graduated from James Madison University with
a Master’s degree in Adult Human Resource Development while he was a graduate assistant for 
the Men’s Basketball team as his main responsibility was being the team’s video coordinator.

Over the course of those two years, they finished with an overall record of 52-16. During his
second year, the team finished as Sun Belt regular season champions.

Dougherty’s first year with JMU, the team finished with a school-record 32 wins and an
appearance in the second round of the the NCAA Tournament in 2023-24. After a 28-3 regular
season, JMU rolled to a Sun Belt Championship over Arkansas State and defeated No. 5 seed
Wisconsin in the Round of 64.

Before attending JMU, Dougherty graduated from Penn State University in 2023 with a
Bachelor’s degree in Recreation, Parks, and Tourism Management and a minor in Sports Studies.
He served as a student manager for the Men’s Basketball team for four years, also being the head
manager for the 2022-23 season.

During that season, Penn State finished with a 23-14 record as they were the runner-up in the Big
Ten Tournament Championship. The team earned its first NCAA Tournament appearance since
2011, where it defeated No. 7 seed Texas A&M in the first round to advance to the round of 32.
The team set a Big Ten record for most 3-pointers made in a season.