As a player, she set school records and became one of the greatest point guards to ever don an Aggie uniform. As an assistant and associate head coach, she turned UC Davis into an immediate force in the Big West Conference by implementing one of the most difficult offensive schemes in the game. In her 14 seasons as head coach, Jennifer Gross has continued the tradition of excellence instilled in her throughout her entire Aggie career.
The first women’s basketball coach in the history of the Big West to win five consecutive coach of the year awards (2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021) — standing behind only Mark French in the number of career coach of the year awards after French won the honor seven times with UC Santa Barbara — and a finalist for the WBCA National Coach of the Year in 2018, Gross enters her 15th season at the helm of her alma mater in 2025-26.
As a result, Gross signed a contract extension in May of 2021 that could keep her on the UC Davis sidelines for the next decade, inking a five-year deal that runs through the 2025-26 season and includes five years of addition automatic renewals beginning in 2026-27. That would keep Gross at her alma mater through the 2030-31 season, marking the longest contract ever given to a UC Davis head coach in the history of the department.
Her 258 victories ranks her as the winningest coach in program history, passing her former mentor Sandy Simpson in a victory over Cal State Fullerton on February 8th, 2025. In addition, she ranks third on the Big West all-time wins list with 153 conference victories. Just in the last eight years alone, the Aggies are a combined 180-90 (.667) overall and 110-39 (.738) in Big West play.
Meanwhile, the five straight regular season titles from 2017-2022 make UC Davis one of only four active schools to have won at least that many along with UConn (seven in the American Athletic Conference, one in the BIG EAST), Baylor (11 in the Big 12), and Gonzaga (five in the West Coast Conference).
Gross has also never shied away from competing against challenging opponents, scheduling 14 games against top-25 teams. UC Davis has faced the consensus No. 1-ranked team in the nation three times and hosted 11-time national champion UConn at The Pavilion in front of a record-setting crowd in 2014. Under Gross, the Aggies have notched six wins over “Power Five” teams, including five over Pacific-12 Conference opponents, while her five postseason wins in the Women’s National Invitation Tournament are the most of any school in the history of the Big West.
Since taking over as head coach full-time in October of 2010, the Aggies have been perennial postseason participants with Gross at the helm, extending their seasons five times in her 12 campaigns — including four of the last seven years from 2017-21, with the run interrupted only by the COVID-19 pandemic that canceled the 2020 postseason with UC Davis holding the No. 1 seed heading into the semifinals of the Big West Tournament.
All told, since returning to her alma mater in 2004-05, Gross has helped establish the foundation of UC Davis’ successful transition to the Division I level, helping lead the Aggies to 350 victories as an assistant, associate, and head coach, three berths in the NCAA Division I Tournament (2011, 2019, 2021), five berths in the Women’s National Invitation Tournament (2008, 2010, 2012, 2017, and 2018), and a .583 (350-250) winning percentage, in 18 seasons on the sidelines.
UC Davis’ dynastic run continued in 2020-21, persevering through the COVID-19 pandemic and a two-month lay-off from competition to claim its fifth consecutive Big West regular season title — and the program’s sixth overall — on the road at Hawai’i, before heading to Las Vegas and running the table, defeating Cal State Fullerton, the Rainbow Wahine, and UC Irvine, en route to its second consecutive tournament title and subsequent NCAA Tournament berth.
Becoming the sixth program in league history to win at least three Big West Tournament titles, the Aggies became the first repeat tournament champion since 2014-15 and became the first team to appear in three straight tournament championship games since UC Santa Barbara accomplished the feat from 1997-2009.
Led by Big West Player of the Year and tournament Most Valuable Player Cierra Hall, Big West Defensive Player of the Year Sage Stobbart, and all-conference honorees Mackenzie Trpcic and Kayla Konrad, UC Davis finished the not-so-ordinary 2020-21 season with a 13-3 overall record and a 9-1 mark in conference play.
The Aggies were then seeded No. 12 in the postseason — the highest-ever NCAA Tournament seed in the program’s Division I history and the highest for a Big West school since 2004 — facing off against No. 5-seeded Missouri State in the opening round in San Antonio. It marked the program’s eighth postseason appearance in 14 years as a Division I program.
In 2019-20, Gross led the Aggies to 17 wins and their fourth consecutive Big West regular season title -- the first conference school to win outright back-to-back-to-back-to-back regular season titles since UC Santa Barbara in 1996-05 -- before the year was prematurely cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
A year earlier, the UC Davis alumna led her team to its third consecutive Big West regular season title, a Big West Tournament championship, and the program’s second-ever NCAA Division I Tournament berth in 2019. At one point, UC Davis won 16 consecutive games — the third-longest single-season winning streak in the history of the program, and the longest since a Gross-led Aggie squad won 20 straight from Dec. 28, 1996, to March 19, 1997.
Before that, UC Davis finished off a record-setting 2017-18 season by winning 28 games — the second-highest total in the history of the program — and making an appearance in the “Elite Eight” of the WNIT in 2018, setting or tying 10 different school single-season team records, earning the program’s first-ever vote in the Associated Press Top 25 on Feb. 26, and rank among the top 50 in the NCAA in 12 different categories.
That followed a 25-win season — its first since the 2011 campaign that ended in the NCAA Tournament — a conference regular season crown, and a trip to the “Sweet 16” of the WNIT in 2017.
Gross became the program’s offensive coordinator when she returned to UC Davis, implementing a Princeton-style offense. Using the fundamentals of sharp cuts, smart passes, and an unprecedented level of teamwork, the Aggies have been able to give opponents fits with their precision and execution. That has paid off as UC Davis has led the league in field goal percentage in six of the last 11 seasons (finishing second in 2016, 2020, and 2023) and paced the Aggies to the top of the three-point shooting charts eight times in the last 10 seasons in 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023.
During her tenure, Gross has coached a total of 15 All-Big West first team selections, nine second team honorees, and nine honorable mention choices, as well as 12 Big West all-tournament selections, nine Big West All-Freshman Team members, one Big West Freshman of the Year (Megan Norris) and four Big West All-Defensive Team honorees. In 2019, Big West Player of the Year Morgan Bertsch became the first UC Davis player to be drafted into the WNBA, selected by the Dallas Wings in the third round with the 29th overall pick, after setting the school’s scoring record and finishing her career ranked third all-time in the history of the Big West with 2,422 career points.
In 2018, three of her charges reached the 1,000 career point milestone in biomedical engineering major Bertsch (only the fourth junior in the history of the program to accomplish the feat), political science major Pele Gianotti, and psychology major Rachel Nagel. Gianotti finished 11th on the all-time scoring list with 1,222 at the time of her graduation, while Nagel was 18th with 1,077.
Bertsch, who led the team in scoring during all four of her collegiate seasons and became the first Aggie player to lead the Big West in scoring at 23.6 ppg as a senior, finished her career by setting 11 new career marks — including the most points ever by a UC Davis basketball player, male or female, with 2,422 — 11 single-season records, and four more single-game records. She ended her career ranked third on the league’s all-time scoring list. In 2022-23, Evanne Turner became the second Aggie to lead the conference in scoring, registering 15.1 ppg to lead the Big West.
Coaching at one of the nation’s top public academic institutions, Gross has been the recruiting coordinator for the Aggies since her arrival in 2004 and, as a former three-year CoSIDA Academic All-District VIII honoree, Gross knows what it takes both athletically and academically to succeed at UC Davis.
Off the court, and in the classroom, the Aggies have shined. Dani Nafekh was honored as the winner of the university's W.P. Lindley Award as the outstanding scholar-athlete of the year, as well as being named the school's Big West Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, in 2017, and a CoSIDA Academic All-District second team honoree in 2018.
In 2019, Bertsch was named the co-winner of the school’s Hubert Heitman Award as the top female student-athlete, sharing the honor with track and field’s Erinn Beattie.
Gross’ student-athletes have gone on to earn a total of 48 Big West All-Academic Team citations while graduates of the program have launched into a variety of professional careers. Many alumnae keep in regular touch with Gross and the staff, following the team closely, and act as resources for the current student-athletes to help them in their future endeavors.
In addition, a number of Gross’ former student-athletes have gone on to professional playing careers in Europe, including Gianotti, who won a league championship with her USC Heidelberg BasCats to earn a promotion to the top division in Germany in 2019, and Fipps, who enjoyed an all-star career with the Lakeside Lightning in Australia following a stint in Portugal.
After spending time in training camp with the Dallas Wings, Bertsch returned to Davis and graduated with her degree in biomedical engineering before embarking on award-winning stops with powerhouse Sparta&K Vidnoe in the Russian Professional Basketball League — a circuit that has hosted such big names as Breanna Stewart, Brittany Griner, Diana Taurasi, and Sue Bird — and Pszczolka AZS-UMCS Lublin in Poland, earning her a training camp invite with the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun in 2021. Bertsch later signed with the Chicago Sky prior to the 2023 season and joined the Phoenix Mercury a year later.
She is one of a number of Gross’ proteges who have gone on to professional careers overseas including: Pele Gianotti (Germany and Luxembourg), Katie Toole (Spain), Nina Bessolo (Greece), Sophia Song (Great Britain), Sydnee Fipps (Portugal and Australia), Alyson Doherty (Germany), Celia Marfone (Germany), Kelsey Harris (Germany), and Brianna Salvatore (Switzerland).
As a student-athlete from 1993-97 at UC Davis, Gross set school records for career assists (448), steals (300) and three-pointers (163). Additionally, she ranks 10th all-time at UC Davis in career scoring, compiling 1,243 points. As a senior, Gross led the Aggies to a school-record 29-3 mark and the school’s first appearance at the Division II Elite Eight tournament. UC Davis finished third at the national tourney, beating Bentley in the consolation final. For her part, she won Kodak All-America honorable mention honors and was selected to the Northern California Athletic Conference first team for the second time. However, perhaps her finest achievement was her participation in 101 victories during her four-year career, the winningest span in program history.
Gross graduated from UC Davis in 1997, earning her bachelor’s degree in organizational studies. She earned her master’s degree in Sports Coaching from the United States Sports Academy in 2008. After her collegiate career, Gross went on to play professionally in Denmark (July 1997-April 1998) and Israel (July-December 1998). She was inducted into the Cal Aggie Athletics Hall of Fame in 2003.
Gross married UC Davis associate head coach Joe Teramoto in 2010 when they were both assistants on former coach Sandy Simpson’s staff. The couple has a son, Joshua, and a daughter, Amelia.
GROSS’ TROPHY CASE
• 2017 Big West Coach of the Year
• 2017 Big West Regular Season Champions
• 2018 Big West Coach of the Year
• 2018 Finalist for the WBCA National Coach of the Year
• 2018 Big West Regular Season Champions
• 2019 Big West Regular Season Champions
• 2019 Big West Tournament Champions
• 2019 Big West Coach of the Year
• 2020 Big West Coach of the Year
• 2020 Big West Regular Season Champions
• 2021 Big West Co-Coach of the Year
• 2021 Big West Regular Season Champions
• 2021 Big West Tournament Champions
GROSS BY THE NUMBERS
• .608 Career Winning Pct.
• 258 Career Victories (1st in school history)
• 38 Big West All-Academic Team selections
• 16 All-Big West first team honorees
• 14 Big West all-tournament team selections
• 13 Big West Conference Tournament berths
• 11 winning seasons as a head coach
• 10 All-Big West second team honorees
• 10 Big West all-freshman team honorees
• 10 All-Big West honorable mention selections
• 5 Conference Coach of the Year awards (all consecutive)
• 5 Big West Conference Regular Season titles as head coach
• 5 Big West All-Defensive Team players (Bertsch - 2019; Hall - 2020, Stobbart - 2021, Konrad - 2021, Epps - 2025)
• 3 WNIT berths (2012, 2017, 2018) as head coach
• 4 20-win seasons as a head coach
• 2 NCAA Tournament berths as head coach (2019, 2021)
• 2 Big West Players of the Year (Morgan Bertsch - 2019, Cierra Hall - 2021)
• 2 Big West Defensive Players of the Year (Cierra Hall - 2020, Sage Stobbart - 2021)
• 2 Big West Conference Tournament Championships
• 2 Big West Tournament MVP (Morgan Bertsch - 2019; Cierra Hall - 2021)
• 1 CoSIDA Academic All-District selection (Dani Nafekh - 2018)
• 1 WNBA Draft Pick (Morgan Bertsch - 3rd Rd, 29th overall, Dallas, 2019)
• 1 Big West Freshman of the Year
| JENNIFER GROSS YEAR-BY-YEAR AT UC DAVIS |
| Year |
Position |
Overall |
Conference |
Postseason |
| 2011-12 |
Head Coach |
17-13 |
9-7 (4th) |
WNIT 1st Round |
| 2012-13 |
Head Coach |
12-18 |
7-11 (7th) |
Big West Tournament 1st Round |
| 2013-14 |
Head Coach |
15-16 |
9-7 (t4th) |
Big West Tournament Quarterfinals |
| 2014-15 |
Head Coach |
15-16 |
8-8 (t5th) |
Big West Tournament Semifinals |
| 2015-16 |
Head Coach |
19-13 |
10-6 (4th) |
Big West Tournament Finals |
| 2016-17 |
Head Coach |
25-8 |
14-2 (1st) |
WNIT 3rd Round |
| 2017-18 |
Head Coach |
28-7 |
14-2 (1st) |
WNIT Quarterfinals |
| 2018-19 |
Head Coach |
25-7 |
15-1 (1st) |
NCAA 1st Round |
| 2019-20 |
Head Coach |
17-12 |
12-4 (1st) |
Big West Tournament Semifinals* |
| 2020-21 |
Head Coach |
13-3 |
9-1 (1st) |
NCAA 1st Round |
| 2021-22 |
Head Coach |
15-13 |
8-8 (7th) |
Big West Tournament Semifinals |
| 2022-23 |
Head Coach |
16-14 |
12-7 (4th) |
Big West Tournament Quarterfinals |
| 2023-24 |
Head Coach |
20-14 |
13-7 (t3rd) |
Big West Tournament Finals |
| 2024-25 |
Head Coach |
21-12 |
13-7 (t3rd) |
Big West Tournament Finals |
| TOTALS |
14 Years |
258-166 |
153-78 |
|
|
| * 2019-20 Postseason canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic… UC Davis was the top seed in the Big West Tournament and scheduled to face Cal Poly in the semifinals before the event was canceled. |
