Head Women's Basketball Coach, FDU (NCAA Division I - NEC) - 2023-Present
Head Women's Basketball Coach, Fordham (NCAA Division I - A-10) - 2011-2022
Head Women's Basketball Coach, Monmouth (NCAA Division I - NEC) - 2008-2011
Head Women's Basketball Coach, LIU-Brooklyn (NCAA Division I - NEC) - 2002-2008
Head Women's Basketball Coach, Saint Joseph's (NCAA Division I - A-10) - 1991-2001
Head Women's Basketball Coach, Richmond (NCAA Division I - CAA) - 1985-1991
Born and raised in Ocean City, N.J.
Bachelor of Arts, Communications, Villanova (1983)
Master of Arts, Secondary Education, Villanova (1983)
Gaitley and her husband Frank have three adult sons: Dutch, D.C. and Jordan “Coop” Gaitley
Career record of 727-414 (.637)
5th Winningest Coach in NCAA Division I (among active head coaches)
15th Winningest Coach All-Time in NCAA Division I history
2nd most Mid-Major wins of any Division I women's basketball coach all-time
21 postseason bids
11 WNIT appearances
Ten NCAA tournament appearances
1982 CoSIDA Academic All-American
Three-time Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association (MBWA) Coach of the Year
Villanova Athletic Hall of Fame enshrinee (1993)
Inductee into the Philadelphia Big Five Hall of Fame (1990)
Member of the South Jersey and Ocean City High School Halls of Fame
Coach as part of the 1995 U.S. Olympic Festival, earning a silver medal
Four-year student-athlete at Villanova
2x Brenda Reilly NEC Coach of the Year (2006-07 at LIU-Brooklyn, 2024-25 at FDU)
- Led FDU to their best season in program history in 2024-25
- Gaitley's 2024-25 squad finished with a program record 29 wins.
- Took FDU to just their second NEC title, and first since 1991-92.
- Led the Knights to their first ever NCAA Tournament berth in 2025.
- Coached and developed players that earned:
- MBWA All-Met First Team
- MBWA All-Met Third Team
- 2x NEC All-Defensive Team
- 2x NEC All-Rookie Team
- All-NEC Third Team
- All-NEC Second Team
- NEC Most Improved Player
- NEC Defensive Player of the Year
- NEC Rookie of the Year
- 3x All-NEC First Team
- Announced as the eighth head coach in program history on April 21, 2023
- Gaitley's sister Coco Vanderslice played on FDU's women's basketball team from 1982-85
- Uniquely, Gaitley and her two sisters, Coco and Courtney played in the same game during the 1981-82 season, with Coco on FDU's side and Stephanie and Courtney playing for Villanova. The game marked the first time in NCAA history that three sisters participated in the same game
- Two-time A-10 Champion with the Rams (2014, 2019)
- 220 wins at Fordham, including 108 in-conference
- Two NCAA tournament appearances, six WNIT berths (2020 tournament cancelled due to COVID-19, would have been seven)
- Gaitley's teams posted seven 20-win seasons, seven 10-plus conference win campaigns and combined for 20 postseason victories
- MBWA Coach of the Year in 2013, 2018 and 2019
- BCANY Coach of the Year in 2019
- Student-athletes under her tutelage earned
- 4x WBCA All-America Honorable Mention
- 2x A-10 Player of the Year
- 1x A-10 Defensive Player of the Year
- Nine First Team All-A-10 honors
- Five Second Team All-A-10 honors
- Four Third Team All-A-10 honors
- 4x A-10 All-Rookie Team
- 4x A-10 All-Defensive Team
- Seven A-10 Tournament Most Valuable Players
- 7x A-10 All-Tournament Team
- 29x A-10 Commissioner's Honor Roll
- 30 A-10 Players of the Week
- 17 A-10 Rookies of the Week
- One MBWA Player of the Year
- One MBWA Rookie of the Year
- Five MBWA First Team honorees
- Three MBWA Second Team honorees
- One MBWA Third Team honoree
- Gaitey's teams shined defensively in the national rankings, finishing as high as ninth in scoring defense in 2019, allowing just 54.4 points per game
- Advanced to the 2011 NEC Championship Final
- Selected to participate in WNIT
