Sheahen Dowling, a member of the FGCU women’s basketball team from 2017-21, returned to the program as the director of video operations in August 2022. She enters her third season on staff for FGCU and was promoted to an assistant coach in the summer of 2024.

In 2023-24, Dowling helped to guide FGCU to its seventh consecutive ASUN Tournament title and its 10th NCAA Tournament berth in program history. The Eagles went a perfect 16-0 in ASUN play for the seventh time in school history, winning its 14th all-time regular season championship.

The Eagles won all 16 conference games by double digits, with the smallest margin of victory being 11 and the largest being 42 points for an average of a dominating 24.5 points. Overall, FGCU went 29-5 as coach Smesko would reach win No. 600 at FGCU. Only FGCU and UConn have won 25 or more games for 14 consecutive seasons. FGCU allowed a league-leading 55.0 points per game and even held Iowa phenom Caitlin Clark to her lowest offensive output of the season.

FGCU narrowly advanced to the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament for the third straight year, ultimately falling to fifth-seeded Oklahoma 70-73 at the buzzer as a 12-seed in Bloomington, Indiana. The Eagles notched a home Power Five win over Kentucky and upset No. 18 North Carolina 65-64 in the Gulf Coast Showcase. The Green and Blue received votes in the AP Poll with the win over the Tar Heels and finished the season ranked No. 2 overall in the CollegeInsider.com’s Mid Major Top 25 Poll.

FGCU knocked down 323 3-pointers in just 34 games, ranking sixth in the nation. The Eagles have made 300-plus three for 15 straight years. In a year of streaks, FGCU kept both its home (32) and conference winning streak alive (41). Emani Jefferson earned the ASUN’s Triple Crown, winning the Player, Defensive and Newcomer of the Year Award. No Eagle has ever accomplished the feat.

Jefferson was also named a WBCA All-America Honorable Mention. Uju Ezudu was an ASUN First Team selection, while Maddie Antenucci landed on the ASUN’s All-Academic squad. Dolly Cairns was awarded the CSC Academic All-District honors and as a team, the Eagles posted a 3.47 GPA.

She spent the 2021-22 school year as a graduate assistant with Valparaiso. Dowling appeared in 95 games as a walk-on for the Eagles, graduating in a tie for 18th on the program's career games played chart. In her four seasons with the Eagles, FGCU posted a combined 115-16 record, won four ASUN regular season titles and captured four ASUN tournament championships, including the 2019-20 season where FGCU and Liberty were declared co-champions following the Covid-19 pandemic canceling the season after the semifinal round.

A native of Chicago, Dowling earned her bachelor’s degree in health sciences from FGCU in 2021. She is a distant relative of author and abolitionist Harriet Beecher Stowe.