The Maryland Terrapins women's basketball are an American basketball team. The team represents the University of Maryland in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I competition. Maryland, a founding member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), left the ACC in 2014 to join the Big Ten Conference.

The program won the 2006 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament championship and has appeared in the NCAA Final Four five times (1982, 1989, 2006, 2014, 2015); Maryland also appeared once in the AIAW Final Four (1978). As members of the ACC, the Terrapins won regular season conference championships (1979, 1982, 1988, 1989, 2009) and an ACC-record ten conference tournament championships (1978, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1988, 1989, 2009, 2012). The program won the Big Ten Conference regular season and tournament championships in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2020, and 2021.

Since 2002, the team has been led by head coach Brenda Frese. Over her 23 season tenure, she has led the Terrapins to 20 NCAA tournament appearances, ten NCAA Sweet Sixteens, six NCAA Elite Eight, three NCAA Final Fours, and the 2006 NCAA National Championship.

History Women's basketball was first organized to play on campus in 1923. The early teams participated solely in intracollegiate competition, with classes or sororities competing against each other for a trophy. The team was officially recognized as a varsity sport in 1971, and was led by coach Dottie McKnight during its first four seasons. The Terps were successful from the start, winning their first state championship in the 1972–73 season. They went on to win ten ACC championships and one NCAA title.

On January 26, 1975, the Terps played host to Immaculata in the first nationally televised women's college basketball game. The game took place in Cole Field House. Some sources report that Immaculata won 80–48, while others report 85–63. On March 9, 2019, Maryland won its 1,000th game, becoming the 14th (unsure, based on 2017 data) team to win 1,000 games. It did so at home against Michigan in the Big Ten Semifinals, which it won by a score of 73–72.

The team has been led by three head coaches: Dottie McKnight (1971–1975), Chris Weller (1975–2002), and Brenda Frese (2002–present). Although McKnight only coached four seasons of Terps basketball, she quickly led her new team to success. She left with a record of 44–17 (.721). Weller, a University of Maryland alumna ('66) and former Terps player, took over the head coaching position in 1975. She led the Terps to numerous national championship appearances and a total of eight ACC championship titles. When she retired, Weller left with a 499–286 record (.636). At the end of the 2018–19 season, current coach Brenda Frese has a record of 458–124 (.787). She has also led her team to a national championship title, eight national championship appearances, and two conference championship titles. Frese is known for her recruiting skills, with Shay Doron being credited as her first major recruit.

Notable players Many Terps have gone on to national prominence, appearing in the Olympics and playing in professional leagues.

WNBA Players Alyssa Thomas, six-time WNBA All-Star for the Connecticut Sun (2014–2024) and Phoenix Mercury (2025-present) Brionna Jones, four-time WNBA All-Star for the Connecticut Sun (2017-2024) and Atlanta Dream (2025-present) Kristi Toliver, two-time WNBA champion (2016, 2019) and three-time All-Star who played for the WNBA's Chicago Sky (2009), Los Angeles Sparks (2010–16) and Washington Mystics (2017–2019, and 2023) Crystal Langhorne, two-time WNBA champion (2018, 2020) and two-time All-Star who played for the Washington Mystics (2008–2013) and Seattle Storm (2014–20) Diamond Miller, No.2 WNBA draft pick in 2023, guard for the Connecticut Sun, formerly of the Minnesota Lynx and Dallas Wings Marissa Coleman, one-time WNBA All-Star who played for the WNBA's Washington Mystics (2009–11), Los Angeles Sparks (2012–13) and Indiana Fever (2014–17) Kaila Charles, player for five different WNBA teams (2020-present) Shatori Walker-Kimbrough, played for five different WNBA teams from 2017-2026 Tianna Hawkins, one-time WNBA champion who played for the Seattle Storm (2013), Washington Mystics (2014–20, 2022-23), and Atlanta Dream (2021) Laura Harper, played for the WNBA's Sacramento Monarchs (2008–09) and is head coach of the Towson University women’s basketball team (2022-present) Angel Reese (transferred to LSU), two-time All-Star and player for the Chicago Sky (2024-25) and Atlanta Dream (2026-present) Shakira Austin (transferred to Ole Miss), center for the Washington Mystics (2022-present) Katie Benzan, player for the Washington Mystics (2023) and GM of the NBA G-League Salt Lake City Stars (2025-26) Vicky Bullett, Olympian in 1988 and 1992; played in Italy for Bari (1990–93) and Cesena (1993–97), in Brazil for the Data Control/Fluminense professional team, and for the WNBA's Charlotte Sting (1997–99) and Washington Mystics (2000–02) Katrina Colleton, played for the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks (1997–98) and Miami SOL (2000–01) Shay Doron, Israeli, played for the WNBA's New York Liberty (2007–08), the Romanian League's Municipal MCM Târgovişte (2010), and the Israeli leagues' Elitzur Ramla (2007–08, 2010–present) Chloe Bibby, played for the WNBA's Golden State Valkyries and Indiana Fever (2025) Kelley Gibson, played for the WNBA's Houston Comets (2000–03) Jessie Hicks, played for the WNBA's Utah Starzz (1997–98), Orlando Miracle (2000–02), Connecticut Sun (2003), and San Antonio Silver Stars (2004) Abby Meyers, played for the Washington Mystics (2023) Saylor Poffenbarger, played for the WNBA's Chicago Sky (2026) Jakia Brown-Turner, played for the WNBA's Washington Mystics (2024)

Other Notable Alumni Christy Winters-Scott, Basketball Color Analyst for college basketball games for ESPN, FSN, The Big Ten Network (BTN), Monumental Sports Network, and Raycom Sports Lea Hakala, Olympian in 1984 (Finnish team) Tara Heiss, Olympian in 1980 Kris Kirchner, Olympian in 1980 Limor Mizrachi, Israeli, played for the ABL's New England Blizzard (1998) Jasmina Perazić, Olympian in 1984 (Yugoslavian team); played for the WNBA's New York Liberty (1997) Deanna Tate, played for the ABL's New England Blizzard (1997–98) and the Chicago Condors (1998)

Roster

2007–08 season Head coach Brenda Frese announced during the pre-season that she was pregnant. Because of this, she was unable to coach from the sidelines for most of the regular season. Newcomer assistant coach Daron Park would take on the role of acting head coach. With the coaching changes, the Terps improved to a 30–3 record, and ranked 5 and 6 in the AP and Coaches polls respectively. Key returning players include Marissa Coleman, Laura Harper, Crystal Langhorne, and Kristi Toliver, all of whom were on the 2006 NCAA Championship team. With the loss of Shay Doron, whose #22 jersey was honored this season, Frese brought in 5 recruits. Two weeks after giving birth to twin boys, Frese returned to the sidelines during the ACC women's basketball tournament. Maryland eventually lost to Duke in the semifinals.

Year by year results

|-style="background: #ffffdd;" | colspan="8" align="center" | Atlantic Coast Conference

|-style="background: #ffffdd;" | colspan="8" align="center" | Big Ten Conference

Postseason results NCAA Division I Maryland has appeared in the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament 33 times. They have a record of 56–32. 1982 #2 First RoundSweet SixteenElite EightFinal Four #7 Stanford#3 Missouri#4 Drake#2 Cheyney W 82–48W 80–68W 89–78L 66−76 1983 #3 First RoundSweet Sixteen #6 Central Michigan#2 Old Dominion W 94–71L 57−74 1984 #6 First Round #3 Cheyney L 64−92 1986 #6 Second Round #3 Ohio State L 71−87 1988 #2 Second RoundSweet SixteenElite Eight #7 St. Joseph's#3 Ohio State#1 Auburn W 78–67W 81–66L 74−103 1989 #1 Second RoundSweet SixteenElite EightFinal Four #9 Bowling Green#4 Stephen F. Austin#2 Texas#1 Tennessee W 78–65W 89–54W 79–71L 65−77 1990 #6 First RoundSecond Round #11 Appalachian State#3 Providence W 100–71L 75−77 1991 #6 First Round #11 Holy Cross L 74−81 1992 #2 Second RoundSweet SixteenElite Eight #10 Toledo#3 Purdue#1 Western Kentucky W 73–60W 64–58L 70−75 1993 #2 Second Round #7 SW Missouri State L 82−86 1997 #9 First Round #8 Purdue L 48−74 2001 #8 First Round #9 Colorado State L 69−83 2004 #12 First RoundSecond Round #5 Miami (FL)#4 LSU W 86–85L 61−76 2005 #7 First RoundSecond Round #10 UW–Green Bay#2 Ohio State W 65–55L 65−75 2006 #2 First RoundSecond RoundSweet SixteenElite EightFinal FourTitle Game #15 Sacred Heart#7 St. John's#3 Baylor#5 Utah#1 North Carolina#1 Duke W 95–54W 81–74W 82–63W 85−75 (OT)W 81–70W 78–75 (OT) 2007 #2 First RoundSecond Round #15 Harvard#7 Ole Miss W 89–65L 78−89 2008 #1 First RoundSecond RoundSweet SixteenElite Eight #16 Coppin State#8 Nebraska#4 Vanderbilt#2 Stanford W 80–66W 76–64W 80–66L 87−98 2009 #1 First RoundSecond RoundSweet SixteenElite Eight #16 Dartmouth#9 Utah#4 Vanderbilt#3 Louisville W 82–53W 71–56W 78–74L 60−77 2011 #4 First RoundSecond Round #13 St. Francis (PA)#5 Georgetown W 70–48L 57−79 2012 #2 First RoundSecond RoundSweet SixteenElite Eight #15 Navy#7 Louisville#3 Texas A&M#1 Notre Dame W 59–44W 72–68W 81–74L 49−80 2013 #4 First RoundSecond RoundSweet Sixteen #13 Quinnipiac#5 Michigan State#1 Connecticut W 72–52W 74−49L 50–76 2014 #4 First RoundSecond RoundSweet SixteenElite EightFinal Four #13 Army#5 Texas#1 Tennessee#3 Louisville#1 Notre Dame W 90–52W 69−64W 73–62W 76–73L 61–87 2015 #1 First RoundSecond RoundSweet SixteenElite EightFinal Four #16 New Mexico State#8 Princeton#4 Duke#2 Tennessee#1 Connecticut W 75–57W 85−70W 65–55W 58–48L 58–81 2016 #2 First RoundSecond Round #15 Iona#7 Washington W 74–58L 65−74 2017 #3 First RoundSecond RoundSweet Sixteen #14 Bucknell#6 West Virginia#10 Oregon W 103–61W 83−56L 63–77 2018 #5 First RoundSecond Round #12 Princeton#4 NC State W 77–57L 60−74 2019 #3 First RoundSecond Round #14 Radford#6 UCLA W 73–51L 80−85 2021 #2 First RoundSecond RoundSweet Sixteen #15 Mount St. Mary's#7 Alabama#6 Texas W 98–45W 100−64L 61−64 2022 #4 First RoundSecond RoundSweet Sixteen #13 Delaware#12 Florida Gulf Coast#1 Stanford W 102–71W 89−65L 66−72 2023 #2 First RoundSecond RoundSweet SixteenElite Eight #15 Holy Cross#7 Arizona#3 Notre Dame#1 South Carolina W 93–61W 77−64W 76−59L 75−86 2024 #10 First Round #7 Iowa State L 86−93 2025 #4 First RoundSecond RoundSweet Sixteen #13 Norfolk State#5 Alabama#1 South Carolina W 82−69W 111−108 (2OT)L 67–71 2026 #5 First RoundSecond Round #12 Murray State#4 North Carolina W 99−67L 66−74

AIAW Division I The Terrapins made four appearances in the AIAW National Division I basketball tournament, with a combined record of 13–1. 1978 First RoundQuarterfinalsSemifinalsChampionship Game TennesseeSouthern Connecticut StateWayland BaptistUCLA W 75–69W 93–53W 90–85L 74–90 1979 First RoundQuarterfinals Valdosta StateOld Dominion W 73–66L 51–69 1980 First RoundQuarterfinals TexasTennessee W 68–63L 76–93 1981 First RoundQuarterfinals KentuckyTennessee W 83–82L 67–79

See also University of Maryland, College Park Maryland Terrapins Big Ten Conference Xfinity Center Cole Field House 2006 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament

External links

Maryland Talk Show – Women's Basketball

References