The University of Tampa Women's Lacrosse

Bio Kelly Gallagher is in her 13th season as the head women's lacrosse coach at the University of Tampa. She was chosen as the program's first coach, being named to the position on Oct. 9, 2012. Gallagher currently serves as the IWLCA President. She was elected President in 2023, and her term as President of the Board of Directors expires in June 2025. She brings a total of 20 years of lacrosse experience, including coaching stints with Limestone College (2011-12) and NCAA Division I Detroit-Mercy (2008-11). In her 12th season in charge of the program, Coach Gallagher led Tampa to its second NCAA National Championship victory, defeating Adelphi, 15-9, in Salem, Virginia. Tampa was the preseason favorite to repeat and started the season as the No. 1-ranked team by the IWLCA. On the way to winning back-to-back NCAA titles, the Spartans were crowned Sunshine State Conference regular season champions for the fifth time and were SSC tournament champions for the fourth time, clinching the program's fourth consecutive NCAA appearance. Tampa finished with an overall record of 21-1, which set a program high for most wins in a single season. Eighteen of the Spartans twenty-one victories were against nationally ranked opponents. Coach Gallagher and her staff were named IWLCA Coaching Staff of the Year for the second straight year. Gallagher helped Isabella Avila, Savvy Barbosa, Peyton Howell, and Lexi Waters earn All-American status. Attacker, Peyton Howell, was named as the IWLCA Natio

Ally Blood joins the Spartans’ coaching staff as Volunteer Assistant Coach for the University of Tampa Women’s Lacrosse program, bringing a standout playing background and a user-driven approach to team culture and offensive execution. A celebrated attack player at Queens University of Charlotte, she recorded a junior‐year total of 46 goals and 51 assists for 97 points, earning IWLCA Second Team All-America honours and SAC Player of the Year recognition. At Tampa, she contributes her offensive expertise and player development acumen to a program that has earned national distinction; the Spartans were recognized by the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association as the Division II National Coaching Staff of the Year in 2024. Ally’s coaching philosophy emphasizes precision in attack strategy, thorough fundamentals in skill development, and building a team environment where athletes feel empowered to lead and improve together. Her energy on the bench, first-hand offensive insight and recruiting ties make her a key contributor as Tampa continues to compete at the highest level in the Sunshine State Conference and beyond.

Elizabeth Gainer is in her second season as an assistant coach at Tampa, joining the Spartans staff for the 2023 campaign. Gainer returned to the Philadelphia area in 2019 to lead Eastern University women's lacrosse as the first full-time head coach in program history. She came to Eastern from the University of Charleston (W.V.) and had experience leading Division I and II programs. In her first season in St. Davids, Gainer had the Eagles off to a strong start before COVID shortened the year. With several key losses because of the year's uncertainty, the short-handed Eagles had a tough run through the 2021 campaign. Gainer grew up in Moorestown, N.J., playing Division I lacrosse at Loyola College. After stints as an assistant at LaSalle and Villanova, she took over the top job at Holy Family University. She inherited a squad that won seven games the year before and led the Tigers to a pair of CACC Championships and won 27 games in her two seasons. From Holy Family, she moved to Manhattan College where she led the Division I Jaspers for three seasons. She moved to the University in Charleston to take over a second-year program.

Erin Ebert joined the University of Tampa staff as an assistant coach prior to the 2026 season. Ebert joins the Tampa staff after previously serving on the coaching staff at Furman University and Coastal Carolina. Ebert started off as an assistant at Furman in 2017 and was later promoted to associate head coach in 2021. During her time at Furman, she helped lead the Paladins to two SoCon regular-season championships in 2019 and 2021 and to three consecutive SoCon Tournament championship games (2018, 2019, and 2021). She coached seven All-SoCon performers during her time in Greenville, including the 2021 SoCon Offensive Player of the Year, Hannah Demis, and the SoCon Freshman of the Year, Meagan Beal. Demis finished the 2021 campaign ranked fourth nationally in both assists and assists per game, and 19th in points, while Kyra LaMotte earned first-team All-SoCon accolades after ranking 15th in the nation for goals scored and 21st in goals per game. Ebert then went on to become the associate head coach at Coastal Carolina, where she spent nearly two years with the Chanticleers. In her roles at Furman and Coastal Carolina, Ebert served as the program’s offensive coordinator and recruiting coordinator while overseeing the draw team. Ebert had a distinguished lacrosse career at Northwestern University, where she was one of the most decorated student-athletes in the nation. A two-time IWLCA All-American (2012, 2013) and Tewaaraton Award nominee in 2013, Ebert helped lead Northwester

Samantha Pagliaccetti joined the University of Tampa women’s lacrosse staff as an assistant coach prior to the 2024 season. In year two, Pagliaccetti and Tampa were crowned back-to-back NCAA National Champions after defeating Adelphi, 15-9. Tampa posted a program-best twenty-one-win season and were both the SSC regular season and tournament champions. Pagliaccetti helped mentor six players to IWLCA All-Region and All-SSC honors. The Spartans also had four players selected as All-Americans and had two IWLCA Players of the Year. The Tampa coaching staff was named the IWLCA South Region and National Coaching Staff of the Year for the second consecutive season. Pagliaccetti helped guide the Spartans to the sixth-best scoring offense in the nation while also mentoring the IWLCA Attacker and Player of the Year, Peyton Howell. In her first season as an assistant coach at the University of Tampa, Pagliaccetti was a part of several program firsts. Tampa won its first-ever NCAA title after defeating Adelphi, 13-8, in Winter Park, Fla. Pagliaccetti was influential in helping the team finish the season with an overall record of 19-3, which is the most wins in the history of the program. She also helped guide the Spartans to their second consecutive SSC Tournament Championship and mentored several Tampa players to All-SSC and All-South Region honors. Additionally, UT had four players who garnered All-American status. She comes to Tampa after serving as the assistant varsity coach/defensiv