Stephanie Del Preore, a 1,000-point scorer at Marist College and former professional basketball player in Spain, was announced Thursday as East Stroudsburg University’s new women’s basketball head coach.
Del Preore, who brings seven years of head coaching experience, spent the previous four seasons at the helm of Division I LIU Brooklyn. During her time with the Blackbirds, Del Preore coached nine student-athletes that earned All-NEC honors, including the 2018-19 NEC Rookie of the Year. She had at least two players named All-NEC every season and coached the first ECAC Rookie of the Year in program history. She also guided a 1,000-point scorer and had 13 players that garnered conference academic honors.
“I am very excited to welcome Stephanie Del Preore to our Warrior Athletics program as the next head women’s basketball coach,” said Dr. Gary Gray, ESU Director of Athletics. “She aligns extremely well with our mission, vision, and philosophy, and we are expecting great things as the program evolves over time. Stephanie brings a wealth of experience as a player and coach at multiple levels. She knows this region well and brings great energy to our program.”
“I envision great things for our women’s basketball program with Stephanie’s leadership,” said ESU President Marcia G. Welsh, Ph.D. “She brings a world of experience to ESU, from her successful Division I playing career, to playing professionally in Spain, to her coaching experiences as head coach at Division I and Division II institutions, and her contributions to a Big East championship team as an assistant coach. I’m confident that she will fully engage our student-athletes in a culture of integrity and success while continuing to build a program that will bring pride to ESU and all of our fans.”
Prior to accepting her position at LIU Brooklyn, Del Preore spent two seasons as the top assistant coach of the women’s basketball program at Seton Hall University. The Pirates won 20 games in her first season, surpassing their total from the previous three seasons combined, and they qualified for the Division I tournament for the first time since 1995 the following year. The Pirates were also crowned regular season Big East champions and were nationally ranked after setting a school record in wins (28) and points in a season (2,569) in 2014-15.
Del Preore spent three seasons as the head women’s basketball coach at the University of Bridgeport, an NCAA Division II institution, from 2010-13. The Purple Knights were regionally ranked during the 2012-13 campaign and finished third in the East Coast Conference with a record of 18-10. Under the direction of Del Preore, Bridgeport advanced to the ECC championship game in 2011 after tallying 17 wins. She coached four first team all-conference players and two all-east region honorees.
She also created and managed the first “Donate Life Day” while at Bridgeport to help raise awareness for organ and tissue donations, an initiative she continues to support to this day.
“I would like to thank Dr. Gray and Dr. Welsh for this amazing opportunity to be the next head women’s basketball coach at East Stroudsburg University,” Del Preore said. “I am very excited to join the ESU family. Throughout this process, I have been impressed by the university, the leadership in the athletics department, and the commitment to the student experience. I can’t wait to get started.”
Del Preore began her collegiate coaching career in 2006 as an assistant at Caldwell College. She spent one season at Caldwell, where she helped to organize practices and oversee film exchange for scouting. She was named the assistant coach at Stevens Institute of Technology in 2008 and helped the Ducks to an Empire 8 championship and the second round of the Division II tournament in 2009. She was named the interim head coach for the final three games of the 2009-10 season.
Del Preore was a four-year member of the women’s basketball team at Marist College from 2000-04 and finished her career with 1,114 points for the Red Foxes. She was named to the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) all-rookie team following her freshman season. During her senior campaign, she led Marist to the program’s first NCAA Division I Tournament appearance after being named the MVP of the MAAC Tournament. She garnered second team All-MAAC honors for her performance during the 2003-04 season.
Del Preore spent one season in Leioa, Spain playing basketball at the professional level for Club Irlandesas of the Liga Femenia 2 in 2004-05. She would lead the team in scoring, rebounding, and minutes played.
A New Jersey native, Del Preore earned a bachelor’s degree in communications from Marist in 2004. She starred as a prep player at Livingston High School and finished her career as the school’s all-time leader in scoring and rebounding. She was inducted into the Lancer Athletics Hall of Fame in 2011.
Del Preore will begin her position at ESU on Tuesday, May 28.
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