Northeastern women’s basketball head coach Kelly Cole announced the addition of Whitney Edwards to the Huskies’ coaching staff on Thursday. Edwards, who joins NU as assistant coach, brings seven years of combined NCAA coaching experience with her to Northeastern, having spent the previous two seasons in the same position at her alma mater, New Hampshire.
“I am thrilled to welcome Whitney to Northeastern and have her join my staff,” said Cole. “Whitney has demonstrated during her time at New Hampshire, Stonehill, and SUNY Plattsburgh, her ability to consistently recruit and retain student-athletes that are eager to grow on the basketball court and in the classroom. She will make a strong addition to our staff and help our program remain competitive in a wide array of areas, certainly athletically and academically.”
As the assistant coach on the New Hampshire sideline, Edwards helped the Wildcats improve by 14 victories from her first to second seasons with the program. During the 2016-17 campaign, she played a key role in New Hampshire setting the program’s single-season record for wins (26), capturing the America East regular-season title, and placing four student-athletes on year-end, all-conference teams. At practices, Edwards worked closely with the development of the Wildcats’ guards, leading positional on-court instruction and film sessions that were geared towards scouting the team’s opponents.
Within the New Hampshire women’s basketball office, Edwards’ primary responsibility was serving as the program’s recruiting coordinator, a role in which she expanded the visibility of the team through six targeted Northeast states, as well as Ontario. She headed the organization of campus visits with prospective student-athletes (PSAs), represented the women’s basketball team at departmental compliance sessions, and created the Wildcats’ first elite camp during the summer of 2016. Edwards also served as the program’s secondary academic advisor, meeting weekly with student-athletes to help them reach their academic goals, and maintained strong rapport with its alumnae.
Before coaching at New Hampshire, Edwards worked for two seasons as the assistant coach at Stonehill, where she assisted in the recruitment of student-athletes across the Northeast with a focus on New Jersey and Pennsylvania. From 2013 to 2015, she helped the Skyhawks attain a 44-15 overall record, win the 2015 Northeast-10 regular-season title, finish the 2014-15 season ranked No. 13 in the nation, and make two NCAA tournament berths, advancing as far as the East regional final during the 2015 postseason.
While at Stonehill, Edwards developed and executed the team’s year-round strength and conditioning program, which assisted in the durability of student-athletes and increased injury prevention. She assisted in the collaboration on the Skyhawks’ practices, conducting individual workouts with the team’s guards while handling all aspects of film exchange. Away from the basketball court, Edwards created the Leadership Development program, coordinated community outreach through youth clinics, Team IMPACT, and quarterly alumnae newsletters, and assisted in team fundraising efforts.
From 2010 to 2013, Edwards was a member of the women’s basketball coaching staff at SUNY Plattsburgh, where she received promotion to associate head coach prior to the 2012-13 season. As a member of the Cardinals’ staff, Edwards led recruiting efforts out of six Northeast states, served as the team’s secondary academic advisor, coordinated the team’s defensive strategy, and mentored two point guards that ended the 2012-13 campaign ranked first and third in SUNYAC in assists per game. She also directed the team’s strength and conditioning program, organized alumnae relations, was the co-advisor of SAAC (Student-Athlete Advisory Committee), and co-instructed the C.H.A.M.P.S. life skills initiative.
Edwards earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology with a minor in deaf studies in 2007 from New Hampshire, where she was a four-year letterwinner and two-time captain of the women’s basketball team. Known for her lockdown defense, she was named the 2007 America East Defensive Player of the Year and was a two-time member of the America East All-Defensive Team (2006, 2007). Upon her graduation from the program, she ranked second on the Wildcats’ all-time lists in steals (229), and assists (382).
Always eager to advance her coaching philosophy, Edwards received her master’s degree in leadership from SUNY Plattsburgh in 2015 and has participated in the assistant coaches’ United States Marine Corps Leadership Workshop, held at Parris Island during August 2014, as well as the United States Marine Corps Coaches Leadership Workshop, held at the Marine Corps Officer Candidates School in Quantico, Virginia, during June 2016.
