Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Women's Basketball

Biography Lisa Wilson was selected as the first head coach of the Embry-Riddle women’s basketball program in August 2013. After taking a year to recruit, Wilson put together a lineup that played its inaugural game on Nov. 7, 2014. The first edition of Embry-Riddle women’s basketball made waves in its first season of competition, finishing at 17-12 overall. The Eagles’ 9-9 Sun Conference record put them at fourth in the league’s regular season standings and the Blue and Gold closed out its inaugural campaign in the quarterfinal round of the conference tournament.   The Eagles managed just seven wins in their first year of NCAA II provisional membership in 2015-16, but Wilson quickly turned things around the following year. She guided her young squad to a 17-9 overall ledger and a 14-6 record against Sunshine State Conference opponents.   The 2017-18 season marked ERAU Women’s Basketball’s first season of competition as a full member of NCAA II and the Sunshine State Conference, and the Eagles immediately established themselves as a force to be reckoned with. The Blue and Gold opened its campaign on a program-best six-game winning streak and went on to finish tied for second in the SSC regular season standings at 15-5. Wilson’s squad finished as the SSC Tournament runner-up and earned an NCAA II National Tournament berth before closing out the year South Region semifinals with a program-best 24-8 overall record.   The 10th season of Embry-Riddle Women’s Basketball was a special one as Wilson led the Blue & Gold to the 2024-25 Sunshine State Conference regular season title as well as the 2025 SSC Tournament crown. The Eagles posted an overall record of 27-5 as well as a league record of 17-3, both of which were program bests and were ranked as high as seventh nationally on the way to a NCAA II South Region Tournament semifinal finish. Additionally, Madyson Jean-Louis was named the SSC Player and Defensive Player of the Year, which were also program firsts.   Jean-Louis is one of many student-athletes that Wilson has guided to individual accolades in her 10-year tenure with the Eagles. In 2014-15 Mercedes Jorge garnered first team All-Sun Conference honors, while Sabrina Whiting, who was The Sun Conference Freshman of the Year and an All-Defensive Team selection, joined Taylor Cyphers as a second team selection. Since being ineligible for postseason awards during the two-year transition from NAIA to NCAA II, the women’s basketball program has featured in the Sunshine State Conference listings. She has coached 14 All-Conference selections, a Player of the Year, a Defensive Player of the Year, two Freshmen of the Year and one Newcomer of the Year. In addition, Jean-Louis earned the program’s third All-Region honor and became the program’s first Honorable Mention All-American in 2024-25.   Wilson has sought to build a culture of excellence in Embry-Riddle Women’s Basketball, on the floor, in the classroom and in the community. The Eagles have posted a better than 3.5 cumulative team grade point average in each of the last 10 semesters and ERAU has been one of 25 teams to be named to the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's Academic Honor Roll six times, including a 3.822 cumulative GPA in 2022-23 which ranked as the fifth best GPA among NCAA II programs. In addition, the Eagles logged more than 200 hours of community service in 2022-23.   Wilson came to Embry-Riddle with 17 years of previous experience in women’s basketball coaching, recruiting and program management. Her coaching experience began in 1996 when she was the assistant and junior varsity coach at her alma mater Lake Howell High School. She simultaneously assumed the assistant coaching responsibility at Seminole State College and after a year of dual coaching, she moved exclusively into college coaching, going to Georgia Southern where she was a women’s basketball first assistant coach and recruiting coordinator from 1997-01. Her recruiting efforts produced 10 student-athletes who helped the Eagles to two Southern Conference titles and still hold top marks in the GSU record books.   Wilson then moved to Stetson as the Lady Hatters’ women’s basketball recruiting coordinator from 2001-02. In just one season at Stetson, she signed seven players, including Joslyn Giles, who was the 2002-03 Atlantic Sun Freshman of the Year.   In 2002, Wilson was given the opportunity to become the head women’s basketball coach at Seminole Community College, now Seminole State College. As the head coach at a Division I junior college program, Wilson led the women’s basketball team to a combined 59-29 record over her three seasons from 2002-05 and under her guidance, the Raiders were co-conference regular season champions, achieved a No. 9 national ranking and were ranked in the Region 8 top 10 each year.   After her first head coaching job, Wilson returned to Division I women’s basketball as an assistant coach for the University of Alabama. At Alabama, Wilson assisted the women’s basketball program in recruiting, game preparation, administrative duties, academic monitoring and individualized position coaching, working with both post players and guards during her tenure. She was also the director of the Alabama camp programs.   Throughout her pre-Embry-Riddle coaching career, Wilson mentored and coached 17 All-Academic team members, 16 All-Conference selections, two All-State honorees, a Scholar-Athlete of the Year, an Arthur Ashe Female Athlete of the Year and a Freshman of the Year. Additionally, five of her student-athletes have gone on to play professionally, including Aneika Henry who played for the Atlanta Dream in the WNBA.   After three seasons at Alabama, Wilson became a national evaluator with Blue Star Basketball and in in 2010, she started the Blue Star-Florida Basketball program serving as a head coach and program director. With Blue Star, Wilson was tasked with overseeing high school and elite-level women’s basketball, recruiting players, administering program budgets, scheduling tournaments, and managing all public relations. Under her direction, 18 individuals have earned All-State recognition, while 13 have signed NCAA Division I contracts. Through her role at Blue Star, Wilson has developed a broad network of recruiting contacts in the state of Florida.   Wilson began her collegiate playing career at West Virginia Tech where she helped the Golden Bears to a conference regular season title and a perfect 18-0 league record in 1990-91. The following season, the Florida native returned to her home state where she was named the Academic Athlete of the Year at Valencia Community College. An NJCAA Academic All-America nominee, she helped the Matadors to the 1992 conference crown. After transferring from Valencia Community College, Wilson transferred to the University of Central Florida where she played for the Knights’ women’s basketball team. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Political Science from UCF in 1994.   Wilson is married to Dr. Matt Wilson. They reside in Ormond Beach with their son Rocco. Coaching History Year Ovr. Pct. Conf. Pct. Postseason 10 Years 162-121 .572 90-68 .570 ERAU Totals 14 Years 221-150 .596 Career Totals 2014-15 17-12 .656 9-9 .500 TSC Tournament 2015-16* 7-19 .683 -- -- 2016-17* 17-9 .654 - - - - 2017-18 24-8 .750 15-5 .750 NCAA II South Regional 2018-19 17-11 .607 12-8 .600 SSC Tournament 2019-20 9-18 .333 7-13 .350 SSC Tournament 2021-22 11-15 .423 9-11 .450 SSC Tournament 2022-23 13-14 .500 8-12 .389 SSC Tournament 2023-24 20-10 .667 13-7 .650 NCAA II South Regional 2024-25 27-5 .844 17-3 .850 SSC Regular Season & Tournament Champions, NCAA II South Regional *Embry-Riddle not eligible for postseason during transition to NCAA II PERSONAL Hometown Winter Park, Fla. Family Husband: Matt Son: Rocco  Education B.S. in Political Science (Central Florida); ACCOLADES 3 NCAA National Tournament Appearances 1 Sunshine State Conference Regular Season Title 221 Career Wins - 162 at ERAU 3 20-win seasons 2024-25 SSC Coach of the Year MILESTONES AT EMBRY-RIDDLE First Victory: Clearwater Christian, 79-55 (Nov. 7, 2014) First vs. Conference Win: vs. Ave Maria, 71-51 (Jan. 10, 2015) First Postseason Win: vs. Nova Southeastern, 90-84 (Feb. 28, 2018) First National Tournament Win: vs. Eckerd, 57-54 (March 9, 2018) 100th Win: Florida Tech, 72-58 (Feb. 2, 2022) 200th Win: Barry, 76-54 (Nov. 23, 2024) Longest Win Streak: 10  (Nov. 8- Dec. 19, 2024)  

Sarah Taylor was named the ERAU Women's Basketball Assistant Coach in July 2019, making her just the second assistant coach in the women's basketball program's short history.   Since her arrival at Embry-Riddle, the Eagles have made four consecutive postseason appearances. In 2024 the Blue and Gold advanced to the semifinal round of the Sunshine State Conference tournament and secured a berth in the NCAA II South Region tournament for only the second time in program history.   Taylor has been responsible for recruiting, retention, skill development and coordinating scouting reports, as well as monitoring student-athlete academic progress. She has played an integral role in the development of five All-Conference selections, as well as two-time Academic All-American Nikki Tucker and 2024 All-South Region honoree Madyson Jean-Louis. Both Tucker and Jean-Louis are members of the Eagles' 1,000-point club. Tucker holds the Eagles' all-time (1,470 points) and single-game (38 points) scoring leader, while Jean-Louis holds the single-season (488) scoring record. In addition, Embry-Riddle Women’s Basketball has been named a WBCA Academic Top 25 team three times and finished with the third-highest team GPA in Division II in 2021. Prior to her arrival at ERAU, Taylor spent two seasons as an assistant coach with her alma mater and the Eagles' Sunshine State Conference foe Rollins, and two seasons as an assistant at Thomas (Ga.). At Rollins, she was tasked with recruiting, scouting and overseeing skill development of guards and forwards. Taylor also served as an Assistant Programs Coordinator, aiding with compliance, processing of scholarships and budget oversight.   At Thomas, Taylor was also responsible for skill development, producing scouting reports, securing partnerships with local restaurants and businesses, and monitoring academic progress. She helped the Nighthawks to a conference tournament appearance and a win over a nationally ranked opponent. She also recruited the 2017 Sun Conference Freshman of the Year, as well as two All-Conference honorees. Taylor was a standout at Rollins, suiting up for the Tars from 2011-15 and leading her team to a 97-29 overall record. A two-time All-SSC selection, she led the Tars to an NCAA II Final Four finish in 2012, back-to-back conference tournament titles in 2012 and 2013, and NCAA II South Region appearances in each of her four seasons.  In addition to leading Rollins in career appearances with 126 games played, Taylor ranks among the Tars' top 20 in scoring (16th, 1,169 points), rebounding (11th, 683 rebounds) and made threes (14th, 108). Taylor also excelled in the classroom and was named to the Sunshine State Conference Commissioner's Honor Roll in each of her four years. She earned her undergraduate degree from Rollins in Communication Studies in 2015, and completed her master’s in Business Administration at Thomas in 2017.

Sarah Napoli joined the Embry-Riddle women's basketball staff in August 2025, after a standout four-year career with the Blue and Gold. Napoli capped off her playing career with a pair of conference championships. The Eagles won the 2024-25 SSC regular season and tournament titles, including a 27-5 overall record, while going 17-3 in conference play. During her senior season, the Orlando native averaged 5.4 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.3 steals while playing 25 minutes per game. Throughout the 2024-25 season, Napoli went on a 17 game stretch where she recorded at least one made 3FG. Prior to that, Napoli started off the 2023-24 season by setting the program single-game record for three-pointers (7), erupting for a career-high 21 points in the first game of that season.  Off the court, Napoli was a five-time member of the SSC Commissioner's Honor Roll and a D2 ADA Academic Achievement Award honoree in each of her four seasons of eligibility. She maintained a perfect 4.0 GPA while graduating with an undergraduate and master's degree in Human Factors Psychology. She is pursuing a second master's degree of Business Administration in Aviation.