Dalhousie University signs Anna (Pendergast) Stammberger to lead Tigers' basketball program

Halifax, NS - Dalhousie University's acting Director of Athletics, Karen Moore announced the signing of Anna (Pendergast) Stammberger as the new head coach of the Dalhousie Tigers women's basketball team.

Originally from Kensington, PEI Anna is a familiar face to Dalhousie basketball. Arriving at Dalhousie in 1978, she initially began her Tigers' career as a recruit for the volleyball team but upon trying out for the basketball team, she secured a spot on the roster and competed for four seasons with the Tigers. She earned CIS All-Canadian status twice and was named Dalhousie's Class of '55 Award Winner in 1983 as the university's top female athlete.

Upon graduation from Dalhousie with a Bachelor of Physical Education degree in 1983, Anna made her way to the national women's basketball team where she represented Canada for 11 years, competing in numerous international competitions across the globe. In 1984 she became the first female athlete from PEI to compete in an Olympic Games and she was recognized by her home province with the PEI Lieutenant Governor's Award for Best Female Athlete in 1987 and was later inducted to the PEI Sports Hall of Fame in 2003.

Anna's impressive credentials in the sport of basketball initially formed as a player but she later developed into a top quality coach. She spent eight years (1995-2003) as head coach in the German 1st Division where she recruited talented and competitive athletes for the Athletic Club BG Rentrop. She returned to PEI in 2003 to take on the roles of athletic director, coach and teacher at Kensington Intermediate Senior High School where she was responsible for the school's varsity programs and coached basketball as well as track & field and cross country. Since 2008 Anna has also served as an assistant coach with Canada Basketball's Center for Performance for Atlantic Canada, working with under-17 elite female basketball players.

"I'm very grateful and proud to be a Dalhousie Tiger again. My experiences at Dal as a student-athlete were extremely positive and important in my development into an international competitor and coach," stated Stammberger, "I'll work very hard to maintain and build on the strong foundation and high standards of excellence set by Dr. Carolyn Savoy."

Karen Moore, Acting Director of Athletics is thrilled with the appointment, "We are so excited to have Anna back with our women's basketball program. When she was a player for the Tigers, she exhibited so many wonderful traits and those have served her well during her career. She is exactly the type of individual we were looking for and I think she will flourish in her new role and ensure the Tigers are nationally competitive well into the future. Anna's experience as a university, national and international athlete along with her amateur and professional coaching success is such a wonderful combination that will serve our players well both in basketball and in preparation for their next steps in life."

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For more information, please contact:

Anna Stammberger, Head Coach, Dalhousie Tigers Women's Basketball
Phone: (902) 222-9550
Email: ah.stammberger@t-online.de