New Elizabethtown Sherri Gorman has been coaching high school basketball. She's a former assistant coach at E-town, an All-American and a member of the school's athletics Hall of Fame.

It's been more than four decades since Elizabethtown went searching for its last women's basketball coach. Needing to find the next leader of a storied program that has two NCAA Division III national championships to its credit, E-town turned to one of the women instrumental in helping deliver a title to the school. Sherri (Kinsey) Gorman, a 1984 graduate, was chosen as the ninth coach in program history, athletic director Nancy Latimore announced March 23.

Gorman replaces Yvonne Kauffman, who retired following the season with 689 career wins at Elizabethtown.

Gorman, a 1990 inductee into the Elizabethtown College Ira R. Herr Athletic Hall of Fame, has spent the last seven seasons coaching the ladies of Lancaster Mennonite High School. Under Gorman, the Blazers have been a player in the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) District 3 scene with regularity. Gorman led her 2007-08 squad to a Class AAA Championship, while her 2006-07 and 2009-10 teams both landed in the district final.

Success for Gorman has come not only on the sidelines, but on the hardwood as well. As a member of E-town women's basketball teams from 1980-84, the former Sherri Kinsey netted 1,310 points, which still stand as the 11th highest career total in school history. Three seasons ended with Kodak/WBCA All-America honors, including 1983-84, when she was a First Team pick. Gorman is one of only two players (Page Lutz the other) in Elizabethtown women's basketball history to be recognized as an All-American three times.

The standard of high academic achievement coupled with athletic excellence is something not lost on Gorman. She herself was a CoSIDA Academic All-American as a senior in 1983-84.
“We are thrilled to welcome Sherri Kinsey Gorman back to Elizabethtown College and Blue Jay athletics,” said Latimore. “Few coaches can match Coach Gorman's passion, energy, work ethic, and ability to lead and motivate young women. We know how fortunate we are to have her join our coaching staff and are confident that she will continue the rich women's basketball tradition that Yonnie Kauffman started 42-years ago.”

Gorman directly contributed to that rich basketball tradition by helping lead the 1981-82 team to the school's first ever NCAA Division III national championship. The Blue Jays were crowned champs after defeating UNC-Greensboro 67-66 on their home court inside Thompson Gymnasium.

For Gorman, the chance to come back to her alma mater was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. “When Nancy [Latimore] called me this afternoon I think her words were 'How would you like to become the next head women's basketball coach at Elizabethtown College,'” recalled Gorman. “I said I'd absolutely love to.”

The Lancaster-Lebanon League's Girls' Basketball Coach of the Year in 2007-08 and 2008-09, Gorman explained that it was tough to find the words to explain what this job means to her. “It's such an awesome feeling to come back home where I had such a great experience, such a great opportunity. We had a lot of success when I was here and I'm still close with Coach Kauffman and a lot of my former teammates.”

Gorman served one season as an assistant under Kauffman back in 2002-03 and played a major role in taking the program to elite status. She is eager to continue building on that tradition. “To take over the program from a coach I played for is just unbelievable. It's amazing. I look forward to the opportunity and I can't wait to get started.”