WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue head women's basketball coach Sharon Versyp today announced the hiring of Beth Couture as an assistant coach with the Boilermakers. Couture comes to Purdue after one season as the associate head coach at Cleveland State University, following head-coaching stints at Converse College, Butler University and Presbyterian College.
"I'm so excited for this next step in my coaching career, the opportunity that Coach Versyp has given me to be involved with one of the top teams in the Big Ten Conference," Couture said. "I'm looking forward to working with the coaching staff and players and continuing the excellence of the Purdue women's basketball program. I know that Coach Versyp has worked tirelessly to make the Boilermakers one of the top teams in the country, and I can't wait to help her continue that success."
"We're thrilled to add Beth to our staff," Versyp said. "She brings a wealth of experience with 26 years as a head coach, and she's been a winner at every stop along the way."
Couture started her coaching career at Presbyterian College in Clinton, South Carolina, where she was an assistant coach for two seasons before serving as the head coach of the Blue Hose for 13 seasons. She compiled 258 wins, posting 20-plus victories eight times, including a 28-2 mark in 1999-00, as Presbyterian won the South Athletic Conference championship and was ranked as high as fourth in NCAA Division II. Couture led Presbyterian to six NCAA postseason appearances, four SAC tournament titles and three SAC regular-season titles. Her squads achieved 10 all-league honors, including three SAC Players of the Year and two SAC Freshmen of the Year, and Couture was a four-time SAC Coach of the Year recipient.
Butler introduced Couture as its head coach in 2002, and she quickly built a winning program, amassing 193 wins in 12 seasons. The Bulldogs posted four straight 20-win seasons from 2008 to 2011 and had five WNIT appearances during her tenure. She is the all-time winningest coach in Butler women's basketball history and mentored 15 Bulldogs to all-league honors, including the 2009-10 Horizon League Player of the Year and a pair of Horizon League Sixth Players of the Year.
Couture spent the 2014-15 campaign as the head coach at NCAA Division II Converse College, and then joined Cleveland State as the associate head coach of the Vikings for 2015-16. All told, she has amassed 455 victories as a head coach.
"Beth has strong ties in the recruiting world, building strong and lasting relationships with people who are influential in recruits lives," Versyp said. "She will never be outworked, and her passion for the game of basketball shines through her coaching style and communication skills. As a former head coach, she has an excellent understanding of the game and has the ability to see the game developing, making her great with adjustments and in-game feedback. She is detail oriented and has shown the ability to develop student-athletes both on and off the floor."
Not only has Couture been successful on the sidelines, but she was also a standout on the court at Erskine College, where she was named a Kodak All-American during her senior season. She was a two-time District 6 Player of the Year, four-time Erskine Most Valuable Player and scored more than 2,000 points during her collegiate career. Couture was inducted into the Erskine College Hall of Fame in 1989.