Carrie Watts enters her sixth season at the helm of the Vikes women’s basketball program in 2026-27. She became the ninth head coach in program history on June 28, 2021.
In her fifth season as lead woman, Watts led the Vikes to a 9-11 record in conference play. The season was a success from an individual awards standpoint, as Watts guided Avery Geddes to a Canada West Rookie of the Year award and U SPORTS All-Canadian team selection.
Watts' squad posted their best record in Canada West play in her tenure during the 2024-25 season, capturing 12 wins for a 12-8 record. The Vikes fell in the Canada West quarterfinals to finish the season at 12-9 overall. Abigail Becker earned Canada West Second Team All-Star honours at the conclusion of the season.
Putting together a major turnaround in the second-half of the 2023-24 season, Watts' squad finished Canada West play with a 10-10 overall record to earn the 10th seed entering the Canada West playoffs. Defeating seventh-seeded Lethbridge in the play-in round and earning the program's first postseason win under Watts, the Vikes upset the No. 2 seed UBC in the quarterfinals to secure the program's first appearance in the Canada West semifinals since 2015. After falling to sixth-seeded Alberta in the semifinals, the Vikes faced fourth-seeded Fraser Valley in the bronze-medal match, ultimately finishing fourth in the tournament. Makena Anderson was named the Canada West Rookie of the Year and also collected U SPORTS All-Rookie team honours and a selection to the Canada West All-Rookie team in her first year as a Vike. Abigail Becker was named a Canada West Second Team All-Star.
During the 2022-23 season, the Vikes posted a 9-11 record in Canada West play, earning a berth to the conference postseason play-in round as the No. 10 seed. Ashlyn Day was named a Canada West Second Team All-Star for her performance during the 2022-23 season.
In her first season as the UVic bench boss (2021-22), Watts guided the Vikes to an 11-8 overall record, including an 11-7 mark in Canada West play and a postseason tournament appearance. UVic put together a seven-game win streak from December 3, 2021, to February 11, 2022, defeating UNBC twice, TRU three times, and UBC twice en route to the postseason. The 2021-22 season saw Ashlyn Day garner Canada West First Team All-Star honours, and the program raise a record $29,200 for Shoot for the Cure.
Watts joined the Vikes from her alma mater, the University of British Columbia, where she was the full-time lead assistant women's basketball coach for 14 seasons (2007-21). During that time, she helped coach the Thunderbirds to a U SPORTS National Championship and three Canada West banners while going 162-68 in league play.
As a player, Watts led UBC to the 2004 U SPORTS championship, the school's first title in 30 years at the time. That season, she was recognized as a Canada West All-Star, U SPORTS Second Team All-Canadian and U SPORTS Defensive Player of the Year before taking home championship MVP honours. Following her UBC playing career, Watts joined the Canadian senior women's national team (2005-07) and competed at the 2006 World Championships and the 2007 Pan-American Games.
A proven winner, Watts's resume includes six stints as the head coach of Basketball BC's U15 and U17 provincial teams, leading to back-to-back bronze medals at the U15 National Championships in 2010 and 2011. She also served as the assistant coach for Team Canada at the 2019 FISU Summer Universiade. Additionally, Watts served as a performance analyst for Team Canada's U23 team at the 2023 GLOBL JAM tournament, helping Canada to a silver medal finish.
Originally from Agassiz, BC, Watts holds three degrees from UBC, including a Bachelor of Human Kinetics (2004), Bachelor of Education (2005), and a Master of Kinesiology (2011).
