KATIE GEARLDS | HEAD COACH
Katie Gearlds enters her third season as the head coach of the Purdue women's basketball team. Returning to her alma mater, the 2007 All-American was elevated to the head job on Sept 17, 2021, becoming the ninth coach in program history
In just two short campaigns, Gearlds has begun the process to return Purdue Women's Basketball back to the national stage. Establishing a new culture, revamping recruiting and reconnecting with the alumnae and fan bases, Gearlds has the Boilermakers headed in the right direction.
YEARLY CAPSULES
2022-23 | Year 2
Gearlds’ second campaign back home, her first with a full offseason, saw her join elite company as one of three coaches in program history to post a win improvement in each of her first two campaigns, joining Linn Dunn and Carolyn Peck. Gearlds guided Purdue back to the NCAA Tournament firs the first time since 2017 behind the program’s best record in five seasons at 19-11, while having two games canceled. The Boilermakers went 9-8 in Big Ten play for their first winning record in league action since 2017-18. Gearlds and the Boilermakers got things rolling in the right direction in non-conference play with a 9-1 record, the program’s best mark since Katie Gearlds was a freshman in 2003-04.
After snapping a 19-game drought against ranked opponents in 2021-22, Gearlds guided the Boilermakers to a pair of ranked wins against back-to-back Big Ten opponents on the road for the first time in program history. Purdue downed No. 22 Illinois 62-52 in Champaign for its first league ranked win since 2018, before knocking off No. 2 Ohio State 73-65 in Columbus. The win over the Buckeyes marked the first true road win over an AP top-5 opponent in Purdue history.
Purdue also netted its first win in the Big Ten Tournament since 2020 with a 57-55 victory over Wisconsin at the Target Center in Minneapolis. Jayla Smith drained a 3-pointer with 4.1 seconds remaining to complete the third-largest comeback in Big Ten Tournament history, erasing an 18-point deficit.
The transfer portal was a boon to the Boilermakers as Gearlds added Lasha Petree from Rutgers and WAC player of the Year Caitlyn Harper from Cal Baptist. Petree paced Purdue with 14.7 points per game, while Harper was one of 11 players from the Big Ten to average double figures and shoot over 50% from the field.
Jeanae Terry was one of three players in the country to record over six points, assists and rebounds per game, as she tallied 190 assists on the year, the second most in Purdue history. Terry was named All-Big Ten Second Team by the league’s coaches, while the media tabbed her honorable mention and a spot on the All-Defensive Team. Abbey Ellis, for the second consecutive year, garnered All-Big Ten honorable mention laurels.
On the recruiting front, Gearlds inked five players during National Signing Day in November. McKenna Layden, Rashunda Jones, Mary Ashley Stevenson, Sophie Swanson and Emily Monson marked Gearlds' first true signing class. The quintet was ranked No. 21 by ESPNW. Already one of the top recruiting groups in the Big Ten, Gearlds added to the class' firepower when Amiyah Reynolds signed for Purdue in May, along with her sister Mila, a transfer from Maryland. Both players were ranked in the top 60 coming out of high school.
COACHING STAFF
