The gift is the first women’s head coach endowment at Princeton University. It celebrates the long tradition of excellence of Princeton’s women’s lacrosse and was made in recognition of the leadership of current women’s lacrosse head coach Chris Sailer.

“We are so grateful to announce this outstanding commitment to Princeton Athletics and Princeton Lacrosse,” said Ford Family Director of Athletics, Mollie Marcoux Samaan ’91. “One of our top departmental fundraising goals has been to endow more head coach positions and in particular to endow women’s head coach positions. Funds from these endowments will allow us to continue to meet our mission of building leaders and building community in a sustainable and highly impactful way for many years to come.”

“This landmark gift given by a female donor as we approach the 50th anniversary year of women’s athletics not only honors our tremendous heritage, but also symbolizes our unwavering commitment to women’s athletics at Princeton now and into the future, said Marcoux. “Specifically, I am thrilled that this gift recognizes the outstanding accomplishments of the women’s lacrosse program and the leadership of Coach Sailer. Beyond her many notable accomplishments on the field of play, Chris represents wholeheartedly what it means to educate through athletics and has served as a role model and mentor to decades of Princeton student-athletes.”

“On behalf of the women’s lacrosse program, I am incredibly humbled and grateful for this generous gift which will have a tremendous impact on our program” said head coach Chris Sailer. “It has been a great honor to be part of such a special community and to have the opportunity to coach and develop so many extraordinary young women at Princeton. All of us affiliated with Princeton women’s lacrosse will continue to work as good stewards of a program we love so deeply.”

A 2008 US Lacrosse National Hall of Fame inductee, Chris Sailer recently completed her 34th season at the helm of the Princeton women’s lacrosse program. She is the first lacrosse coach, male or female, ever to reach 400 wins at one Division I school and the second Division I women's coach overall to reach the milestone. She has guided the women’s lacrosse team to three NCAA championships, 11 national semifinal appearances, 26 NCAA tournament appearances and 15 Ivy League titles.

Princeton University’s women’s athletics program, with its tradition of excellence both in intercollegiate competition and in its commitment to the educational and leadership value of athletic participation, has served as a national model for the past 50 years. Beginning with two pioneering women’s tennis players and the first female administrator in University history, Princeton has seen its women’s teams produce national champions, Olympians, professional athletes, Rhodes Scholars, Academic All-Americans and legions of women who have succeeded in fields such as medicine, law, business, education, the military and many others. Princeton’s women’s teams combined to win 211 Ivy League championships in the first 50 years, a figure 55 greater than the next-best school and 136 greater than the third-best school.

An official naming of the endowment will be released at a later date.

For information about supporting Princeton Athletics, contact Kellie Staples, Senior Associate Director of Athletics, Advancement at kgale@princeton.edu or 609.258.6696.