The 2003 Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year, former Hawk standout Cindy Griffin enters her fourth year as head coach of the Saint Joseph's University women's basketball team looking to guide the Hawks to their fourth straight postseason appearance. A 1991 graduate of SJU, Griffin (nee Anderson) was named the seventh head coach in the program's 30-year history on April 25, 2001. She previously served as the head women's basketball coach at Loyola (Md.) College from 1999-2001. Griffin has compiled an overall record of 113-63 in six seasons as a head coach. With six seniors leading the way, the 2004 team went 22-11 and advanced to the WNIT Elite Eight. A rollercoaster season that featured peaks and valleys at every turn, SJU finished second in the A-10 East and dropped a heartbreaker in the Atlantic 10 Championship to Temple. Four Hawk seniors reached the 1,000-point plateau, marking just the eighth time in NCAA history that a quartet of players had reached the milestone in the same season. Erin Brady and Stephanie Graff went on to sign professional contracts, the second and third players in the Griffin era to do so. Following a memorable first year at the helm of her alma mater, Griffin upped the ante in her second season by capturing A-10 Coach of the Year honors after guiding the Hawks to a 19-11 record. The team sprinted to the Conference's Eastern Division title and earned a berth in the WNIT for the second straight season, despite the departure of SJU's all-time leading scorer and a non-conference schedule that was rated fourth nationally. The 34-year-old Griffin helped to reinvigorate the SJU program in her first season, leading the squad to a 24-8 record and the second round of the WNIT. She capitalized on the team's tradition of scrappy play and rugged defense, while releasing the reins and allowing the team to play a more up-tempo style on the offensive end of the floor. The Hawks finished the year among the national leaders in nine different categories and paced the nation in free throw shooting accuracy for the second straight year. Griffin was elevated to the position of head women's basketball coach at Loyola College midway through the 1998-99 season. She was the seventh-youngest head coach in Division I at the time. The team's associate head coach prior to assuming the helm, Griffin replaced Patty Coyle (who moved on to serve as an assistant coach with the WNBA's New York Liberty). Despite stepping in at midseason in 1998-99, Griffin and the Greyhounds didn't miss a beat. She led Loyola to a team-record 21-victories that season. Overall she compiled a record of 48-33 during her tenure at the Baltimore school, guiding the squad to the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference semifinals all three seasons. Griffin finished her playing career as a fifth-year senior at Saint Joseph's in 1992, then spent the 1992-93 season as a graduate assistant at her alma mater. She moved on to Vanderbilt University, where she served as an assistant coach from 1993-95 on the staff of former Saint Joseph's head coach Jim Foster. Foster had recruited Griffin to SJU and coached her during her first four seasons on Hawk Hill. In her two years as an assistant at Vanderbilt, the Commodores finished 53-15 overall, won the 1995 SEC championship and reached the NCAA Sweet 16 both seasons. In addition to coaching responsibilities, Griffin was also the co-director of the Vanderbilt Basketball Camp and the director of the Black & Gold Club. Griffin left Vanderbilt after the 1995 season to return to the East Coast as an assistant coach at Loyola College. She spent three seasons as an assistant at Loyola before being elevated to the role of associate head coach in 1998. One of the top playmakers in Saint Joseph's history, Griffin starred for the Hawks from 1987-88 through 1991-92 (missing the 1988-89 season due to injury). A three-year team captain, Griffin finished her career with 662 points, 278 rebounds, 510 assists and 197 steals. She still ranks fourth on SJU's all-time assist list. As a junior in 1990-91, she played in 1,178 out of a possible 1,200 minutes to set the school record for minutes played in a single season. The Hawks made three NCAA tournament appearances and posted three straight 20-win seasons during her playing career. A two-time second team All-Big 5 choice, as well as a third team All-Atlantic 10 pick as a senior, she was inducted into the Saint Joseph's Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 1998. Born July 11, 1969, Griffin is a native of Maple Glen, Pa. and played her high school basketball in the Philadelphia Catholic League, graduating from Bishop McDevitt High School in 1987. She was inducted into McDevitt's Athletic Hall of Fame in 1997 and in 2002 received the Philadelphia Catholic League's alumni achievement award. She earned a Bachelor's degree in accounting from Saint Joseph's in 1991 and completed work on a M.B.A. degree from SJU in 1993. She resides in Conshohocken, Pa. with her husband Curtis and newborn daughter Kaylie.