Emily Samuelson begins her ninth season as an assistant women's basketball coach with the 2024-25 season.
During her time with the Tritons, UMSL has posted a 99-87 record.
Samuelson helped the 2021-22 team post a 23-6 record, the 23 wins are the most in a single season in school history and it was the program's fourth 20-win season in school history. The Tritons went a program best 17-3 en route to claiming the Central Division regular season title, advanced to the semifinal round of the GLVC Tournament for the fourth time in program history and the program's third appearance in the NCAA Tournament. She helped mentor five All-GLVC selections that season.
She helped the 2017-18 team post a 21-6 record, notching a 20-win season for just the third time in program history, while the 21 wins ties the program's second most. The Tritons also went 14-4 in GLVC play, a then program-best, en route to claiming in the Central Division regular season title. During the season, UMSL put together a 14-game win streak, which tied a program record, while other highlights included a 12-0 record in games played in the Mark Twain Building, senior Shawnta Johnson recording the program's first-ever triple-double and the Tritons advancing to the GLVC Tournament semifinals for just the third time in program history.
In 2016-17, that team posted a 16-12 record, in which they won seven of their final eight regular season games to not only secure a GLVC Tournament bid, but to lock up a first round home game. Two of those wins were back-to-back home victories over No. 20 Southern Indiana and No. 17 Bellarmine.
She came to UMSL following three years at Saint Louis University where she served as Director of Basketball Operations/Video Operations.
While at SLU, Samuelson was part of a Billikens program in which the 2015-16 team won a share of its first conference championship and reached the Women’s National Invitation Tournament third round. The Billikens finished with a 26-8 overall record, setting school records for total wins, conference wins, overall winning percentage, conference winning percentage, home wins and road wins.
Prior to her appointment at Saint Louis, Samuelson spent
five seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Detroit Mercy, where she helped guide the 2012-13 team to a 21-13 record and the Women’s Basketball Invitational championship. In 2011-12, the Titans went 20-14, finished second in the Horizon League regular-season standings and postseason tournament, and earned a WNIT bid.
Detroit Mercy tied for second in the Horizon League in 2009-10 with a 14-4 conference record, a seven-game improvement from the previous season. In Samuelson’s first season, 2008-09, the Titans doubled their win total from the previous year by capturing 12 victories.
Samuelson’s first coaching experience was a two-year stint (2006-08) at Franklin (Ind.) College. That followed two seasons of professional basketball as a member of the Marburg Blue Dolphins, a team in Germany’s top division. Samuelson served as team captain in her second year.
Samuelson began her collegiate career at Western Michigan, where she made the 2000-01 Mid-American Conference All-Freshman team. Following her sophomore year she transferred to Northern Michigan, where she earned Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference second-team honors, a place on the league’s All-Defensive team and GLIAC All-Academic plaudits. Samuelson was a Dean’s List student and a recipient of the National College Athlete Honor Society Award.
Samuelson is a 2004 graduate of Northern Michigan with a bachelor’s degree in social work. She also earned her master’s degree in leadership and organizational development from Saint Louis in 2016.
She has one son, Cruz.
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