Laurie KellyStaff

Laurie Kelly is in her 11th season as the head coach of the Gustavus women’s basketball team in 2022-23. Kelly, a 1993 graduate of the University of St. Thomas with a degree in speech communications, came to Gustavus from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, where she directed the Division I Lumberjacks for nine seasons.

A Rochester, Minnesota native, Kelly made a quick ascent through the Division II and I coaching ranks after a record setting Division III playing career at the University of St. Thomas in the early `90s.  In nine years at Northern Arizona, she compiled the most wins in the program’s history (117), while also directing the team to its first-ever Big Sky Conference tournament title and NCAA tournament bid in the 2005-06 season.  During Kelly’s tenure, the Lumberjacks advanced to the Big Sky tournament six times with two appearances in the championship game (2006, 2007), and her teams registered two of the three 20-win seasons in the program’s history.

In addition to quality on the floor, her squads were also strong in the classroom, with four players earning CoSIDA Academic All-District honors including one Academic All-American. The Lumberjacks were recognized in the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Top 25 Academic Honor Roll six times, with two Top Ten national rankings.  

Prior to her position at Northern Arizona, Kelly coached at Binghamton University in New York and built the Bearcats into one of the top Division II programs in the country before helping the institution transition to a Division I program in 2001-02. In that first year of Division I competition, Kelly directed the team to a 19-9 record and a second-place finish in the America East Conference. During her five years at Binghamton, Kelly compiled a record of 94-22, including a mark of 75-13 in the program’s final three years at the Division II level, and her squads won New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) titles in 1999 and 2000 and Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) titles in 2000 and 2001. She was named ECAC Coach of the Year in 2000 and New York State Coach of the Year in 2002. Kelly started her collegiate coaching career as the graduate assistant coach at Minnesota State University, Mankato from 1996 to 1998. While she was at Minnesota State, Mankato she earned a master’s degree in physical education with an emphasis in sports administration.

Before her success in the coaching ranks, Laurie Trow Kelly was a standout player at the University of St. Thomas from 1989 to 1993 and is recognized by many as one of the greatest players in NCAA Division III history. A gifted athlete, the 6-1 Kelly scored 2,607 points and pulled down 1,204 rebounds in four years, earning Kodak All-America honors three consecutive seasons. In her senior season (1992-93), Kelly was voted National Player of the Year by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association after averaging more than 26 points per game. She set 22 conference and 24 school records, was conference MVP three times and was also named Midwest Sports Channel NCAA Division III Women’s Athlete of the Year. In January of 2006, Kelly was one of five players selected to the NCAA Division III 25th Anniversary Team.

Laurie Kelly is the ninth head coach in the history of the Gustavus women’s basketball program. In addition to her coaching duties, Kelly serves as the coordinator of the Gustavus Health Promotion program (GHP). The Gustavus Health Promotion program offers employees at Gustavus a variety of educational opportunities, assessment tools, and physical activity experiences so that they can achieve and maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Kelly lives in St. Peter with and her husband, Matt, and their two daughters, Morgan and Madison.

Season           Record  Institution

1998-99           26-4     Binghamton University

1999-00           27-2     Binghamton University

2000-01           22-7     Binghamton University

2001-02           19-9     Binghamton University

2002-03           3-8       Binghamton University

2003-04           12-16   Northern Arizona University

2004-05           19-10   Northern Arizona University

2005-06           22-11   Northern Arizona University

2006-07           20-12   Northern Arizona University

2007-08           10-20   Northern Arizona University

2008-09           9-21     Northern Arizona University

2009-10           5-24     Northern Arizona University

2010-11           11-18   Northern Arizona University

2011-12           9-20     Northern Arizona University

2012-13           15-11   Gustavus Adolphus College

2013-14           14-12   Gustavus Adolphus College

2014-15           17-9     Gustavus Adolphus College

2015-16           20-7     Gustavus Adolphus College

2016-17           25-3     Gustavus Adolphus College

2017-18           24-7     Gustavus Adolphus College

2018-19           15-12   Gustavus Adolphus College

2019-20           18-9     Gustavus Adolphus College

2020-21           5-2       Gustavus Adolphus College

2021-22           22-5     Gustavus Adolphus College

2021-22           26-3     Gustavus Adolphus College

25 seasons    415-262

Courses Taught