Meet The Founders

Co-founders Philippa Portnoy and Teresa Saputo-Crerend made it their mission to support women in sports by creating LaunchBreak, a world wide online professional networking community to connect athletes.

Get to know each founder below.

Headshot of Launchbreak co-founder Philippa Portnoy.
Headshot of LaunchBreak co-founder Teresa Saputo Crerend.

  • Co-Founder

    Philippa has a BA from Barnard College and an MBA from Columbia Business School. She competed and served as co-captain of Columbia University’s women’s tennis team. She was the first female president of Columbia’s alumni athletics club. She also co-founded the Columbia Athletics Women’s Leadership Council to support and mentor young women athletes. She was named one of the 50 most influential female athletes in Columbia’s 50th Anniversary of Title IX.

    She also previously worked for ten years at Citibank in the Aviation Finance Group.  

    She has been a Barnard trustee and helped to found the Barnard Athena Center which is dedicated to building female leaders.   

    She has triplet sons who competed in college athletics, so she has a deep understanding of the current demands of college athletes.  

    Philippa enjoys running, tennis, and fitness.  She is an animal lover and adores her dog, Kipper.   

  • Co-Founder

    Teresa has a BA from Columbia College where she also played on and captained the women’s tennis team. She earned an MBA from Columbia Business School and has a strong marketing background, having worked at Tennis Magazine and at Groupe Danone/Evian Natural Spring Water (handling North American sports sponsorships). Teresa has significant hands-on not-for-profit experience and served on the Advisory Board for the Jesse Kolber Foundation, which is committed to providing access to college to low-income students.  

    Additionally, she has held leadership volunteer positions at Columbia University and helped to develop, market and run the first University-wide conference for women at Columbia.  She serves on the Columbia University Alumni Association’s Mentoring & Networking Committee. Teresa is a 2025 Recipient of Columbia Athletics Varsity “C” Alumni Award.

    Teresa is a huge fan of professional tennis and follows all the players on Instagram :)

Meet The Advisors

The LaunchBreak Advisory Board consists of professionals in a wide range of industries who provide LaunchBreak access to up-to-date information on strategic business management to support and connect athletes. We welcome their talents, wisdom, and time to provide access to mentors, networking, athlete-focused business support, job board for athletes, and a women’s sports discussion forum.

Get to know each advisor below.

LaunchBreak advisor Reah Miyara.
Reah Miyara
LaunchBreak advisor Sam Gordon.
Sam Gordon
LaunchBreak advisor Brittany Ammerman.
Brittany Ammerman
LaunchBreak advisor Jaime Stephenson.
Jaime Stephenson
LaunchBreak advisor Delphine Park O'Rourke.
Delphine Park O'Rourke
LaunchBreak advisor Taja Edwards.
Taja Edwards
LaunchBreak advisor Cynthia Howard.
Cynthia Howard
LaunchBreak advisor William Crerend.
William C. Crerend
Adeline Gray
LaunchBreak advisor Maryam Hassan.
Maryam Hassan
LaunchBreak advisor Ericka Alford.
Ericka Alford
Nadia Eke
LaunchBreak advisor Michelle Estilo Kaiser..
Michelle Estilo Kaiser

Meet The Ambassadors

Our LaunchBreak Ambassador Board consists of a cross-section of LaunchBreak members from current and former student-athletes to leading industry executive women professionals who have generously offered to promote LaunchBreak to their networks. We are grateful to them for their guidance, time and passion for women’s sports.

Get to know each ambassador below.

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Lisa Kelly.

    Lisa Kelly

    Business Owner & CEO; Drake University Rowing

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Mira Ruder-Hook.

    Mira Ruder-Hook

    Outdoor Guide & Entrepreneur; University of Michigan Tennis

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Rachel Cleary.

    Rachel Cleary

    USATF Coach & Official; Hunter College Track & Field

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Rachel Selmore.

    Rachel Selmore

    Collegiate Volleyball Coach; Ramapo College of NJ Volleyball

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Josephine Kinlan.

    Josephine Kinlan

    Undergraduate at University of the Pacific

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Phebe Herlocher.

    Phebe Herlocher

    Student at Drexel University; Drexel University Field Hockey

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Alexandria Seydel.

    Alexandria Seydel

    Business Owner & General Counsel; University of Iowa Soccer

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Jessica Beal.

    Jessica Beal

    Clinical Sports Pharmacist; OLY Weightlifting Medalist

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Jena VonFeldt.

    Jena VonFeldt

    Mental Health Therapist; Gustavus Adolphus College Softball

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Stesha Carle.

    Stesha Carle

    Software Engineer; US Rowing National Team; UM Rowing

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Angela Morales.

    Angela Morales

    Women’s Soccer Podcast Host; CCC & LBSU Thrower

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Leah Carey.

    Leah Carey

    D1 SAAC Ivy League Rep; Brown University Softball

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Alexandra Hambro Tapley.

    Alexandra Hambro Tapley

    Business Owner; University of Southern California Rowing

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Becky Horn.

    Becky Horn

    Individualized Ed. Plan Coordinator; TMC Soccer & Softball

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Sharon Kuong.

    Sharon Kuong

    Emergency Radiologist; Columbia University Swimming

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Lucy Chi.

    Lucy Chi

    MBA Student Athlete TCU - Supply Chain Management/Bball

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Danielle Bratis-Smith.

    Danielle Bratis-Smith

    Registered Nurse; Westmont College Track & Field

  • LaunchBreak ambassador Patty Doolittle Giannattasio.

    Patty Doolittle Giannattasio

    Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist; URI Volleyball

  • Cassie Ackemann

    Account Executive, Greenfly; SMU Track & Field