Former Lady Raider standout Erin Grant returns to Lubbock as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator, Head Coach Marlene Stollings announced Thursday.

“I am delighted to have Coach Erin as a part of our staff. There is no doubt that her wealth of experience both as a player and a coach will help us make Lady Raider Basketball great again,” Coach Stollings said.

“She is experienced with winning at the highest level including an Elite Eight appearance and two Sweet Sixteen appearances. Coach Erin’s drive and inexhaustible work ethic helped her garner Big 12 co-freshman of the year honors, two All-Big 12 first team honors, an AP All-America Honorable Mention, and the 39th overall pick in the 2006 WNBA draft. She will use that same drive, work ethic, and passion for Lady Raider basketball to help current and future Lady Raiders achieve their greatest potential.”

Grant returns to her alma mater after two seasons as an assistant coach at the University of New Mexico.

“I am thrilled to return home to Texas Tech and the Lady Raider program. I want to thank Coach Stollings for bringing me back to my alma mater and the great state of Texas,” Grant said. “The girls basketball talent in Texas is and has always been unrivaled. We are determined to recruit young women within the state that will return Texas Tech to national prominence. I learned so many valuable lessons as a student-athlete at Tech and I look forward to the privilege of serving the current and future Lady Raiders.”

Prior to New Mexico, Grant spent four seasons as an assistant at Memphis. In her four years with the Tigers, Grant helped in developing freshman guard Ariel Hearn into a C-USA All-Freshman Team pick, as Hearn led Memphis with 109 assists in 2012-13, becoming the first Tiger freshman since 1982-83 to dish out 100 or more assists in a season.

The next two seasons (2013-14, 2014-15), Grant continued to have a hand in Hearn’s development, as the Tigers guard garnered All-American Athletic Conference honors.

Grant helped another freshman shatter that mark one season later, molding Breigha Wilder-Cochran into an American Athletic Conference All-Freshman Team selection after handing out 125 assists and ranking third in assists (4.2 apg).

Grant spent one season as an assistant coach for the Lobos before her stint at Memphis. That year she helped the Lobos make a run at the Mountain West Tournament championship game. As a guards coach at New Mexico, Grant helped junior Caroline Durbin to her first career All-MW First Team honor after the guard led the league in 3-point field goal percentage.

Grant began her coaching career as an assistant at UT Arlington, where she helped the program to its second WNIT appearance in 2009. That 2008-09 UT Arlington team finished with a 22-11 overall mark.

Grant was a four-year standout point guard at Texas Tech. She played for legendary coach Marsha Sharp, helping the Red Raiders compile a mark of 93-36 in her four seasons. She was a three-time All-Big 12 Conference honoree, including first team accolades in 2005 and 2006. Grant was also a three-time Big-12 All-Academic First Team pick and was the Big 12 co-Freshman of the Year in 2003 when her 228 assists led the league and set the freshman single-season assists record.

As a senior in 2006, Grant was a Kodak/WBCA All-American and an AP All-America Honorable Mention selection. She played in the WBCA All-Star Challenge following her senior campaign and was the 39th overall pick in the 2006 WNBA Draft by the Seattle Storm.

She also played overseas, helping the Stockholm 08 team to the Swedish Championship and earning the championship’s MVP award. Grant completed the 2006 season with the WNBA Houston Comets before beginning her coaching career at UT Arlington in the 2007-08 season.

In 2005, Grant earned a spot on USA Basketball to compete at the World University Games in Izmir, Turkey. The team captured the gold medal after defeating Serbia and Montenegro.

(Courtesy: Texas Tech Sports Communications Department)