The University of Toronto are excited to announce the hiring of Varsity Blues alumna Ellen Ougrinov as new lead assistant coach with the women's basketball program.

"We're thrilled to have Ellen back with our program as lead assistant," said Varsity Blues women's basketball head coach Dianna Ros. "It's always special to welcome an alumna back into a leadership role, but Ellen brings a unique level of experience and accomplishment. I know she'll have a tremendous impact on our student-athletes and our program, and I'm excited to see what we can accomplish together."

Ougrinov competed for four seasons with the Varsity Blues women's basketball team from 2019 to 2024. The OUA all-star concluded her career with 1,081 points, becoming just the eighth player in program history to surpass 1,000 career points. Her ascent up the Varsity Blues record books was helped by her incredible outside shooting, which saw all four of her seasons register in the single season Top 10 for Blues three-point field goals all-time, leading to a new program record for career three-point field goals (189). Ougrinov graduated with both an Honours Bachelor of Kinesiology and Master of Teaching from U of T.

Following her U SPORTS career, Ougrinov served as a graduate assistant coach with the Blues during the 2024-25 season. Additionally, she attended training camp with the Bulgarian national team and signed a professional contract in Portugal with CAB Madeira for the 2025-26 campaign.

"The University of Toronto women's basketball program has had such a big influence in my life," added Ougrinov. "It gave me friendships, mentors, and experiences that challenged me to grow both on and off the court. Returning as a lead assistant coach feels like a full-circle moment, and I'm incredibly grateful for the opportunity to be part of the next chapter of a program that has given me so much. I'm looking forward to supporting our players, continuing to learn as a coach, and helping the team compete at a high level this season."

The University of Toronto Varsity Blues women's basketball team will begin their 2026-27 OUA campaign in late October, opening the regular season on the road at York on Friday, Oct. 23 before hosting their home opener on Saturday, Oct. 24 versus the Laurier Golden Hawks. Tickets for all Varsity Blues home games are available at varsityblues.ca/tickets, while every OUA basketball game is also streamed online via oua.tv.