WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue women's basketball head coach Katie Gearlds added a trio of new staff members to the program heading into the 2023-24 season.
Amie Anthrop joined the team as the director of basketball operations. Chaz Calloway has taken over as the program's strength and conditioning coach. Abby Downard will serve as the graduate assistant for the team.
Anthrop moved into the women's basketball director of operations position following two years as the supervisor of softball operations for the Boilermakers. Prior to her time at Purdue, Anthrop was a head coach in the high school ranks for nine seasons at Clinton Prairie, Harrison and Fountain Central, going 144-65 during her tenures.
Anthrop played her college ball at Southern Indianna, where she played in and started 112 games. She amassed 1,336 career points and became the second player in Screaming Eagles history to join the 1,000-point and 300-assist club.
Calloway moved into his role with women's basketball after spending last season working with the men's and women's tennis teams and the swimming programs. Calloway came to Purdue following seven seasons at his alma mater Cincinnati, where he worked with baseball, cross country, soccer, swimming and track & field. He also worked with the Bearcats' football team in 2016 and 2017.
Downard reunites with her former head coach Katie Gearlds after a stellar career playing for Marian. Over five seasons with the Knights, Downard won five Crossroads League regular season titles, two tournament championships and reached the NAIA Tournament all five seasons. She was named an NAIA All-American in 2019-20 and finished her career with 1,456 points, 658 assists and a school record 291 steals.
Downard served as an assistant coach at Franklin College during the 2022-23 season.