STANFORD, Calif. – With a newly endowed assistant coachship, all of the Stanford women's basketball coachships have now been endowed, ensuring that the program will be able to retain and recruit the very best coaching staff.
The latest coachship was created by a gift from Carole and Larry Peiros, MBA '81, a couple with strong ties to the Farm: Two of their children attended Stanford, and they are longtime fans of the women's basketball team. Katy Steding, currently in her second season with the Cardinal, will be the inaugural Peiros Family Assistant Women's Basketball Coach.
"We are grateful to the Peiros family for their generous support of a championship program," said Bernard Muir, the Jaquish & Kenninger Director of Athletics. "Stanford women's basketball has a great legacy of success both on and off the court, which is continually shaped and encouraged by our exceptional coaches. I am thrilled to see this recognized in such a meaningful and impactful way."
"As season ticket holders for many years, it has been a joy to watch the women's basketball team," said Larry Peiros. "We are proud to support a program that has been so consistently successful producing wins on the court and the coaches who develop student-athletes into lifelong leaders."
Stanford women's basketball is one of the most successful programs in the nation with three national championship wins, including the 2021 title. Off the court, the program has featured 14 Academic All-Americans in its history, including two in one season for the first time last year: Lexie Hull and Kiana Williams. The Cardinal has also earned a perfect Graduation Success Rate from the NCAA each of the last 14 years.
Leading the program is the sport's all-time winningest coach: Tara VanDerveer, who is the Setsuko Ishiyama Director of Women's Basketball.
"To have all of our coachships endowed shows the incredible enthusiasm that women's basketball enjoys at Stanford, and I am so grateful to the Peiroses for their support," said VanDerveer. "I am excited to continue leading this team."
Katy Steding, '90, who is herself a Stanford women's basketball alumna, said she is honored to be the inaugural holder of the Peiros Family Assistant Women's Basketball Coachship.
"This team has unbelievable reserves of commitment, grit, and resilience, and accomplishes amazing feats," Steding said. "It is wonderful to see our donors commit to the team's future success."