Lisa Fortier was named the Head Coach of the Gonzaga University women’s basketball program on April 14, 2014 after having spent nearly a decade on staff, including seven years as an assistant. Entering her 12th season in 2025-26, Fortier has taken the program to new heights.

Fortier is the only coach in program history to have ten 20-win seasons in their first 11 seasons, most recently with the 24-11 mark posted in 2024-25. Going into her 12th year at Gonzaga, Fortier has had six players named the WCC Player of the Year (Yvonne Ejim x2, Kaylynne Truong, Jenn Wirth, Jill Townsend, Jill Barta), three WCC Sixth Woman of the Year (Melody Kempton, Yvonne Ejim, Maud Huijbens), 24 All-WCC First Team selections, seven All-WCC Second Team selections, eight All-WCC Honorable Mention selections and six WCC All-Freshman Team performers. She’s been named the WCC Coach of the Year seven times, and she was selected as the Maggie Dixon Rookie Coach of the Year in 2015 along with being a Naismith Coach of the Year candidate in three seasons, including a semifinalist twice. Following the success of the 2023-24 season, Fortier was also named the Kathy-Delaney Coach of the Year. 

Fortier’s players have also excelled academically as 44 players have been selected to the WCC All-Academic team along with 11 players earning Division I-AAA ADA Scholar-Athlete recognition. Yvonne Ejim was also named the program's first Academic All-American in the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons along with the Becky Hammon Player of the Year in 2023-24. Fortier also coached 2018 CoSIDA Academic All-District 8 selection Chandler Smith and the program’s first ever Senior CLASS Award First Team All-American, Jill Townsend.

In her 11th season at the helm, Lisa Fortier guided the Zags to a 24–11 overall record (17–3 WCC), capturing the West Coast Conference regular-season title.  Gonzaga made a deep run in the WBIT—knocking off UTSA and top-seeded Colorado—before falling to Minnesota in an overtime quarterfinal thriller. Fifth year standout Yvonne Ejim anchored the team, becoming Gonzaga’s all-time leader in both scoring and rebounds. She surpassed 2,000 career points and 1,000 rebounds—becoming the first player in WCC women’s history to reach both milestones—while averaging nearly 20 points per game. The Zags caught fire in the second half of the season, winning 16 of their final 17 conference games to secure the regular-season crown.

The Bulldogs had the toughest non-conference schedule in school history on deck in the 2023-24 season. The Bulldogs started the season with a 7-2 record before taking on No. 3 Stanford at home on Dec. 3. Gonzaga came out hot and didn’t let up any lead as they defeated Stanford, 96-78, for its highest ranked win in program history. After handing Stanford’s most lopsided loss since 2020, the Zags entered the AP and Coaches Polls at No. 23 and remained in the polls for the rest of the season. The Zags went on to win 24-straight games – a school record – to claim their 19th WCC Regular Season. GU went undefeated in the West Coast Conference with a 16-0 record and defeated opponents by an astonishing average of 30.7 points, which was not only a school record, but was also a WCC record.

Not only were they undefeated in conference, they remained perfect inside the Kennel during the regular season for the second-straight season to make them have the second-best winning streak at home in the nation – only behind National Champion South Carolina. During those 24-straight wins, one of those stood out in conference games. On Feb. 3, the Zags hosted Pacific and scored a record breaking 19 three pointers to defeat the Tigers, 104-39. The 65-point win was the largest margin of victory over a Division I opponent in school history as seven Bulldogs contributed to the 19 threes made.

Going into March Madness with a 32-3 record, the Zags were poised to be a top 16 seed which included hosting rights for the first two rounds. On Selection Sunday, the committee agreed that the Bulldogs deserved to host and selected them as a No. 4 seed. In front of a sold-out crowd at McCarthey Athletic Center, Gonzaga defeated UC Irvine in the first round, 75-56. The game marked the largest margin of victory in an NCAA Tournament for GU and advanced them to the second round to play No. 5 Utah. Against the Utes, the Bulldogs played in front of the second-straight sold-out crowd in the Kennel and won 77-66 to advance to the Sweet 16 in Portland, Oregon. It was the fifth time Gonzaga has made it to the Sweet 16 and Lisa Fortier’s second time as a head coach.

2022-23 was another phenomenal year with Fortier leading the Zags to their 18th WCC Regular Season Title and 14th NCAA Appearance. The Zags were ranked as high as No. 15 in the AP Poll during the season, even with facing team injuries and sickness. At one point in the season, the Bulldogs only suited up seven players for a couple of games, but they ended the season with an incredible 28-5 record. Gonzaga had big-time wins over then-ranked No. 6 Louisville in Battle 4 Atlantis, which marked the highest ranked win in GU women's basketball history. The Zags then defeated No. 23 Tennessee two days later to secure third-place in the Bahamas. Gonzaga went on to have a nearly perfect conference slate, going 17-1, overall to win the regular season. Kaylynne Truong was named the WCC Player of the Year and tabbed with AP All-American Honorable Mention honors. Truong and Yvonne Ejim were both finalists for 2023 WBCA NCAA Division I Coaches' All-America as well. As a team, GU led the country in three-point percentage and finished with 40.5% from beyond the arc, which was also a program record.

In 2021-22, Fortier led the Bulldogs to an overall record of 27-7, including a 15-2 conference record. Gonzaga won its 10th WCC Conference Championship Tournament title, securing its spot in the NCAA Tournament for the 13th time in program history. Fortier and the Bulldogs were seeded No. 9 in the tournament and defeated No. 8 Nebraska in the first round, 68-55. In the next round, GU battled the No. 1 seeded Louisville, and fell by only nine points. Three players earned WCC All-Conference recognition, with Melody Kempton and Kayleigh Troung earning All-WCC First Team and Yvonne Ejim winning Sixth Woman of the Year. This marked the second-straight year that a Gonzaga player was named the Sixth Woman of the Year.

Amidst a global pandemic, Fortier guided the Zags to their 17th West Coast Conference regular-season title, ninth WCC tournament title and 12th NCAA Tournament appearance. For the first time in program history, GU was ranked in the national polls every single week of the season, and the Bulldogs collected a slew of personal awards along the way, including Honorable Mention AP All-America honors for both Jill Townsend and Jenn Wirth.

In 2020-21, Fortier led the Bulldogs to an overall record of 23-4, including a 16-1 conference record, which secured the fifth-straight West Coast Conference title. The Bulldogs lost in the first round in the NCAA Tournament, but Fortier still led them to a No. 20 ranking in the final rankings. Four players earned WCC All-Conference recognition, with Jenn Wirth named Co-WCC player of the year along with Jill Townsend on the All-WCC First Team. Seven players were recognized on the WCC All-Academic team, including Jill Townsend and Jenn Wirth. 

In 2019-20, Fortier led the Bulldogs to their first regular-season Top 10 ranking, reaching No. 10 in the USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll and a No. 11 ranking in the Associated Press poll, their highest AP ranking ever. Gonzaga put together its best regular-season record (28-2), finished the season with a 28-3 record—the highest win percentage in program history—and secured its fourth-straight West Coast Conference regular-season title with a conference- and program-record tying 17-1 record. Gonzaga was slated to host the NCAA Tournament First and Second Rounds—the first time the Zags would host since the NCAA adjusted hosting rules to include the top 16 seeds in 2014-15—before the abrupt end of the season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Fortier’s Zags further displayed national dominance both offensively and defensively, ranking second in the nation in three-point field goal percentage (39.5) and third in scoring defense (51.9 ppg). Five players earned WCC All-Conference recognition in 2019-20, highlighted by Gonzaga’s ninth Player of the Year, Jill Townsend, while six players were named WCC All-Academic. For her efforts, Fortier was named a semifinalist for the Werner Ladder Naismith Coach of the Year award.
 
2018-19: In 2018-19, Fortier led the Bulldogs a No. 11 USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll ranking and a No. 12 Associated Press Poll ranking while guiding the Zags to a 29-5 overall record, which ties for the second-best in program history. GU claimed its third-straight WCC regular-season title while Fortier was named WCC Coach of the Year for the fourth time in five seasons, surpassing her own conference record for the award. The Bulldogs advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the 11th time in program history and the fourth time under Fortier, securing the No. 5 seed, the highest in program history. Gonzaga advanced to the NCAA Second Round for the sixth time in history, falling to Oregon State 76-70 in Corvallis, Ore. Fortier coached three Zags to First Team All-WCC honors in Laura Stockton, Zykera Rice and Chandler Smith while Jill Townsend was selected Honorable Mention. Fortier was also selected as a Werner Ladder Naismith Coach of the Year Late Season Candidate in addition to being selected as 20 local Spokane women as part of the 2019 Women in Business Leadership Awards.
 
2017-18: With a young crew that carried just one senior on the roster, Fortier posted her then-winningest season with a 27-6 record, the program’s 10th 25-win season in 11 years. The Zags went 17-1 in conference play, the first WCC Team ever to accomplish the feat, claiming the regular-season title. Gonzaga went on to claim the WCC Tournament title as well, advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the 10th time in history. Three players earned WCC All-Conference recognition, led by Player of the Year Jill Barta, the eighth POY in program history. WNBA Draft pick Jill Barta became the third Zag in history to be named First Team All-WCC three time in her first three seasons.
 
2016-17: Fortier’s Zags swept the WCC regular-season and tournament championships while Fortier became the fastest coach in program history to 50 wins. At 26-7, Gonzaga advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the eighth time in nine years and ninth time overall. Fortier’s 2016-17 squad set program records in three pointers made (224), free throw percentage (77.4) along with breaking the single-game three-pointers made record three times, finally settling on 17. Jill Barta became only the second sophomore in the Division I era to score 1,000 career points at GU.
 
2015-16: In her second year, Fortier led the Zags to the WNIT Second Round behind freshman phenom Jill Barta. Barta was selected First Team All-WCC—the first freshman to earn First Team honors in eight years—while Shelby Cheslek collected Honorable Mention honors. Cheslek was also named WCC All-Academic First Team while Kiara Kudron, Shaniqua Nilles, Emma Stach, Georgia Stirton and Elle Tinkle were honorable mention selections.
 
2014-15: In her first season as head coach, Fortier led Gonzaga to a 26-8 finish and its seventh-straight NCAA Tournament appearance. The Zags advanced to their fourth Sweet 16 following a pair of upsets in the first and seconds rounds as an 11-seed. Gonzaga set new program records in 2014-15, including a program-best 77.4 percent from the free throw line which also ranked fourth in the country. The Bulldogs also set new marks in free throws made (534) and made three-pointers (211). Fortier was named the WCC Coach of the Year after guiding the Zags to their 11th-straight WCC regular-season title. Four Zags also collected All-WCC honors as Sunny Greinacher and Elle Tinkle were named All-WCC First Team, Keani Albanez picked up All-WCC Second Team honors and Emma Wolfram was selected to the WCC All-Freshman team. Fortier was also named the WBCA Division I Rookie Coach of the Year after completing the best rookie season of any Gonzaga coach to date. Her 26 wins and 76.5 win percentage were both top of the list among first year finishes for any GU women’s basketball coach.
 
Fortier first came to Gonzaga in 2004, spending two years as the coordinator of basketball operations. She then spent one season as an assistant coach at the University of Northern Colorado before returning to GU in 2007.In her seven years as a Gonzaga assistant, the Bulldogs produced an overall record of 196-43. The Zags dominated the West Coast Conference during that span, compiling a 98-8 mark to go with seven consecutive WCC regular-season championships and five WCC Tournament titles.
 
After a second-round appearance in the WNIT in Fortier’s first season as an assistant, the Zags qualified for the NCAA Tournament the next six years, which included a stretch of three-straight Sweet Sixteens from 2010-12. The highlight was an Elite Eight run in 2011, in which the Bulldogs upset three higher-seeded teams.
 
In addition to serving as Gonzaga’s recruiting coordinator, Fortier has been responsible for coordinating GU’s defense. She also spent time coaching Gonzaga’s guards. She has mentored two WNBA draftees in Courtney Vandersloot and Katelan Redmon as well as Haiden Palmer. She also coached Taelor Karr, the 2012-13 WCC Player of the Year.
 
A native of Grass Valley, Calif., Fortier played collegiate basketball at Butte (Calif.) Community College before transferring to Cal State Monterey Bay. At CSUMB, she earned Honorable Mention All Cal-Pac Conference honors as a junior and was an NAIA Academic All-American in 2003. She also earned the 2004 CSUMB Female Scholar Athlete of the Year.
 
Fortier graduated Magna Cum Laude from CSUMB in 2004 with a bachelor’s degree in human communications. Fortier earned her master’s degree in sport and athletic administration from Gonzaga in 2006.
 
Fortier, who spent two years as the Assistant Coaches Representative on the WBCA Board of Directors, is married to Craig Fortier, who joined the Gonzaga staff as an assistant coach in May of 2014, after previously serving as the associate head men’s basketball coach at Eastern Washington University. They welcomed their first son, Marcus, in 2010. Their second son, Calvin, was born in 2012, and they welcomed a daughter, Quincy, in July, 2014.