Longwood University Athletics

Maeve Gallagher joined the Longwood women's basketball staff as an assistant coach in May, 2018, coming in as the first official hire made by head coach Rebecca Tillett.

A former three-sport athlete at Point Park University, Gallagher came to Longwood following a three-year stint at Washington & Jefferson College where she was an assistant coach for a program that went 62-22 overall and 44-10 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) during her tenure. With Gallagher on staff, the Presidents earned three consecutive top-three finishes in the PAC, advanced to two ECAC Tournaments including a championship game berth in 2016, and won at least 20 games twice.
 
At Washington & Jefferson, Gallagher worked under the direction of Jina DeRubbo, who was named 2016 PAC Coach of the Year and 2018 ECAC Coach of the Year and who has more than 400 wins and a .700 winning percentage in her 14 seasons. Under DeRubbo, Gallagher played a vital role in the program's recruiting, scouting, preparation of practice plans and assisting in day-to-day basketball operations. She was instrumental in the recruitment of 2018 PAC Freshman of the Year Lauren Gilbert, who averaged 12.8 points per game during her freshman season to rank third on the President roster.
 
"Maeve comes from a coaching family," Tillett said. "Her dad, Bill Gallagher was named the 2003 High School Coach of the Year and led many teams to championships. She worked with an exceptional coach in Jina DeRubbo and volunteered her time to study with national champion coach, Jess Strom at California University of Pennsylvania. Maeve is passionate about our game and consistent improvement. Our women will enjoy her ability to simultaneously share her competitive intensity while caring for them deeply. Maeve has hit the ground running to get our camps ready to go. She has the unique gift of being able to make people laugh every single day."
 
A native of Brookline, Pa., Gallagher got her start in college coaching in women's soccer before making the transition to the basketball realm as a volunteer at California University of Pennsylvania in 2015 under Division II National Championship head coach Jess Strom. Under Strom's leadership, Gallagher learned and assisted with player development, strategy and recruiting techniques before moving on to her first full-time basketball coaching stop at Washington & Jefferson.
 
In addition to her college coaching resume, Gallagher has also assisted with a variety of camps, including serving as the individual camp director at the United States Naval Academy where she oversaw a group over 125 campers. She also assisted with camps at Washington & Jefferson and University of Virginia. 
 
"I could not be more humbled or eager to begin this journey as a Lancer," Gallagher said. "I'm thankful to Troy Austin and Coach Tillett for the opportunity to join the Longwood Community. An institution with such dedication to molding the student-athlete is what I view as infinitely valuable. I'm very excited to put forth the skills I was fortunate to obtain from championship caliber mentors and believe Coach Tillett provides the same merit of leadership.
 
"I'm eager to hit the ground running under such reputable guidance, and believe her non-stop commitment to bettering those around her will lay the foundation for success. There is a special group of young women in place, and I am very fortunate for this opportunity to join the Lancer women's basketball family, I believe together there is no ceiling for us here."
 
During her time at Point Park, Gallagher was a starter and captain on the women's basketball team, started and captained all four years on the women's soccer team, and played softball. In basketball, she led the Pioneers to the 2012 AMC Conference Championship and the 2013 KIAC Conference Championship.
 
Along with her basketball acumen, Gallagher also spent time as an assistant women's soccer coach at the University of Mount Union from 2013-15 and holds Level II Speed and Explosion certification from the National Association of Speed and Explosion.
  
Gallagher received her Bachelor of Arts and Sciences in instructional studies from Point Park in 2013 and is currently pursuing her Master of Science in exercise science and health promotion from California University of Pennsylvania.

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