Teri Mariani

Teri Mariani has spent most of her life at Portland State University, as a student, an athlete, an administrator, and a coach. Now in her thirty-fourth year on the PSU campus, twenty-nine of those as softball coach, her teams have won 646 games. Teri currently ranks fourteenth on the all-time Division II “winningest” coaches list. When the Vikings placed third in the nation in 1991, Mariani was named West Region Coach of the Year, an honor she was awarded again in 1992. In April 2005, the National Association for Girls and Women in Sports presented her with their coveted Pathfinder Award.

A former softball player, Mariani became the youngest person ever to be selected to the Portland Metropolitan Softball Association Hall of Fame for both her playing and coaching contributions to the sport. She was also inducted into the PSU Athletics Department Hall of Fame in 1999 and into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in 2003.

Tim Walsh, Head Football Coach for Portland State University said of Mariani: “Teri Mariani is not just an icon in the women’s athletic world, but in all of athletics. She is the definition of the word coach and more importantly, she is a genuine great person. In my twenty-seven years of coaching, Teri Mariani is the coach and person I look to for guidance. Simply the BEST!!”

A Portland native, Mariani is a graduate of St. Mary's Academy and a 1976 graduate of PSU. An outstanding three-sport athlete at PSU, she helped lead the basketball team to the national tournament as captain, and also led the volleyball team to consecutive national tournaments, including two top ten finishes. Her triumphs on the softball field, both as player and coach, are legendary.

Christina Friedhoff, President of St. Mary’s Academy said of her: “When Teri Mariani graduated from St. Mary’s Academy in 1970, she was destined to create a lasting impression in the field of athletics for women in the history of the State of Oregon. Not only is Teri a credit to her profession, but she demonstrates that courage, commitment, drive, and ability can lead to records and awards in a field that is beginning to open its doors completely to the accomplishments of gifted and dedicated women. We are so proud of her!”

In addition to her coaching career, during her illustrious tenure at PSU, Teri Mariani has served the athletics department as associate athletic director, has twice been interim athletic director, and has served three stints as senior woman administrator. She has become one of the most honored and respected people on campus, giving her time and her heart to activities related to athletics and other things.

President and CEO of Joe’s, Norm Daniels, said: “Teri Mariani is the glue that has held Portland State athletics together for the many years she has been a part of PSU. I would refer to Teri, first, as our friend, and second, as the hero of every athlete that has attended the University in the last twenty years—whether they knew her or not.”

In February 2006, when Tom Burman resigned as PSU’s athletic director to accept a post with the University of Wyoming Foundation, it was clear that there was only one person who would be able to step into a vital administrative position on short notice and during the middle of the year, and that person was Teri Mariani. It is expected that a new athletic director will be named early next year. In the meantime, Teri, in her inimitable fashion and with true Portland State Viking spirit, continues to move the department forward, to meet new challenges, and to create opportunities for excellence.

Congesswoman Darlene Hooley said of her: “I remember Teri from her days as an outstanding student and a fine athlete when I had the privilege to coach her in high school at St. Mary’s Academy in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Teri, always serious in the classroom, was just as driven to succeed on the court. But that’s the sort of dedication to excellence that Teri maintained as she did during her years at Portland State. Hundreds of women, including me, have had their lives affected in a positive way by Teri Mariani, and her contributions to the sport and the university will be felt far into the future.”

Centered in the heart of Portland State University, the Walk of the Heroines celebrates and honors women who have illuminated our lives. Please join us as we pay lasting tribute to our friend, our colleague, our very own heroine—Teri Mariani!

Locate on Walk:

• Naming Wall (Right Wall), 1-1