Katie Meier retires as Miami women's basketball coach - ESPN

CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Katie Meier, who led the Miami women's basketball team to 10 NCAA tournaments and guided the Hurricanes to the Elite Eight last season, announced her retirement from coaching Thursday.

Meier, the 2011 Associated Press National Coach of the Year who had four years remaining on her contract with the Hurricanes, will remain with the university as a special adviser and ambassador for the athletic department. She coached at Miami for 19 seasons, going 362-208 in that span.

Her decision to retire — and it was her decision to move into a new role, an idea that she brought to the university herself — means Miami will have a new coach for only the second time in 36 years next season. Ferne Labati coached at Miami for 17 seasons before Meier was hired in 2005, and now the school will embark on a national search for a replacement.

«Nineteen years ago, I was offered my dream job to be the head coach of the University of Miami, and while I have absolutely loved living that dream, it is with a heart full of pride and gratitude that I announce my retirement from coaching,» Meier said. «Miami is an incredibly special place, and my journey here has been an honor and a privilege. Today is a day to celebrate and reflect on the amazing success that was achieved through collaboration with outstanding people.»

Meier spent 23 seasons as a head coach, the first four at Charlotte and the rest at Miami.

Among the duties that are envisioned in her new role: further help with fundraising for women's programs, serving as a mentor and liaising with alumni. She has long been involved with fundraising at Miami, even making sizable donations herself and challenging others in the community to follow her lead to help women's athletes