Payne joined Castleton's staff as the head women's basketball coach in July 2023.
In her second season, Payne led the women's basketball team to a 7–18 overall record and a 3–13 mark in the Little East Conference.
First year Emily Dingmon secured an LEC Rookie of the Week Award and scored the very first NCAA Division III triple-double of the season. Dingmon finished the season leading the team in rebounds and blocks, while landing second in free-throw percentage and total points scored.
In the Spartans first season with Payne at the helm, the Spartans went 10-15 overall and 4-12 in the Little East, narrowly missing the postseason tournament.
Payne boasts an impressive background as both a coach and a player, having spent five seasons as a collegiate assistant coach following an All-American playing career at Plattsburgh State. She graduated as the Cardinals’ all-time leading scorer with 1,722 points and all-time leading rebounder with 759 boards.
Following graduation, Payne spent one season as an assistant coach at Clarkson, helping guide the Golden Knights to an 18-8 record. She then joined the United States Air Force where she served on active duty for nearly four years as a Munitions Controller in Tucson, Arizona. During her time in the Air Force, she continued playing basketball and was a member of the All-Air Force Women’s Basketball Team.
After her enlistment, Payne returned to the sideline as an assistant coach at Russell Sage College. She helped the Gators to a 15-12 record and a berth in the Empire 8 Championship game in 2019-20 before becoming the assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at the College of St. Rose. Under her guidance at St. Rose, the team increased its win total in each of her last two years with the program while earning Northeast-10 Conference playoff spots. Payne oversaw all facets of recruiting and oversaw other areas of the program including practice planning, film scouting and team-building activities.
