PROMOTING FROM WITHIN: Lauren Gosselin, far right, looked on as Carla Berube made a point to her players on the Princeton University women’s basketball team during a game this past winter. In the wake of Berube leaving Princeton to guide the Northwestern program, Tiger assistant coach Gosselin has been promoted to head coach. (Photo by Frank Jacobs III)
By Bill Alden
Although Carla Berube recently stepped down from her post as the head coach of the Princeton University women’s basketball team to guide the Northwestern program, she is leaving the Tigers with a special legacy.
Last week, Princeton Athletics announced that Berube’s longtime assistant coach Lauren Gosselin will be taking the helm of the Tiger program.
Gosselin credited Berube with being a major influence in her development as she becomes the 11th head coach in program history.
“It is an incredible honor to be named the next head coach of Princeton women’s basketball,” said Gosselin in a quote on the Princeton Athletics website. “I would like to thank John Mack (Princeton director of athletics), Greg Busch (Princeton senior associate director of athletics) and the entire search committee for their trust and belief in me as I step into this new role. I also want to thank Carla Berube for being a leader, a mentor, and a friend who has empowered me over the last eight years and prepared me for this moment.”
Coming to Princeton from Tufts University along with Berube in 2019, Gosselin quickly felt at home in Princeton.
“From the moment I stepped on campus seven years ago, I fell in love with everything this university stands for — especially our mission of ‘Education Through Athletics,’” added Gosselin in her website statement. “My time here has proven that it is the people who make this place truly special. Our student-athletes, alumni, staff, and campus community represent the very best, and I cannot wait to lead, learn and continue to grow alongside them. This is a special opportunity, and I am eager to carry the torch with pride and lead this storied program into its next chapter. There is no better place to develop champions — on the court, in the classroom, and in life.”
Gosselin spent the last seven years on the Princeton coaching staff under Berube, most recently as associate head coach. In six seasons played with Gosselin on staff, Princeton has won five Ivy League championships, going 147-29 overall (.835) along with a 77-7 mark (.916) in Ivy play during the regular season.
Princeton has been a fixture in the postseason with Gosselin on the sidelines as she helped the program win four Ivy Tournament championships, earn five NCAA Tournament bids — with a sixth likely to have come in the COVID-shortened 2020 season and win two NCAA Tournament games against No. 6 seed Kentucky in 2022 and No. 7 seed NC State in 2023.
Mack believes that Gosselin has what it takes to continue Princeton’s winning tradition.
“I am very excited about this next chapter for our women’s basketball program,” said Mack as quoted on the Princeton Athletics website. “Lauren has quickly established herself as a rising star in the coaching ranks and we are thrilled that she and her family have chosen Princeton as the place they want to be. Lauren is a tremendous recruiter, and a first-class developer of talent who has been instrumental in the growth of our student-athletes over her time at Princeton. I have been fortunate to watch Lauren grow and excel as a leader and colleague over my time at Princeton and I am supremely confident in her as we embark on this next step as a basketball program.”
Prior to moving to Princeton, Gosselin served as an assistant coach under Berube at Tufts during the 2018-19 season. During that season, the Jumbos went 28-3 and won their third New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Championship, beating then-undefeated and top-ranked Bowdoin in the final. Tufts also advanced to the NCAA Division III Elite Eight that year.
Before her time at Tufts, Gosselin was a graduate assistant at Boston College while securing her master’s degree in Leadership and Administration. Before BC, Gosselin was at the NCAA office in a postgraduate internship program, helping the women’s basketball staff with the NCAA Tournament and Final Four.
Gosselin graduated from Bentley University in 2014. She was a four-year starter, three-time All-American, and two-year team captain for the nationally ranked Falcons. Her senior year was spectacular as she led the team to the Division II national title with an undefeated 35-0 season. She earned national recognition as the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division II National Player of the Year, the Capital One Academic All-American of the Year, CWSA/Honda Division II Athlete of the Year, and an NCAA Today’s Top 10 Award honoree.
She graduated as the all-time leading scorer in Bentley history, tallying more than 2,100 points. Gosselin also excelled in the classroom, graduating summa cum laude with a degree in marketing and minor in finance.