7 Women’s College Soccer Coaches You Need to Know
Any soccer player will tell you the importance of a solid coach. Your coach has your back and guides you down the path of sportsmanship, teamwork, and improvement. Collegiate coaches are in a league of their own. Coaching changes little by little at every level depending on age or skill. Some coaches have been around for a long while and have molded their teams to be elite champions, while others are just getting started. Here are a few women’s college soccer coaches across every division who you could learn from.
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Kia McNeill
The head coach at Brown, Kia McNeill, has been leading this team since 2016 and has used that short time to pump the program way up. A former pro player herself, McNeill is a former Boston Breaker and member of the USWNT U-19 and U-23 teams.
⭐️ KIA MCNEILL ⭐️
For the second season in a row, our head coach Kia McNeill has been crowned the @IvyLeague Coach of the Year!
📰 – https://t.co/B0NjVmnjIw#GoBruno pic.twitter.com/kTgfX5S5Oy
— Brown Women's Soccer (@BrownU_WSoccer) November 10, 2021
As a coach, she has brought the Bears to their first NCAA tournament in 25 years. 2019 was a huge year for Brown and McNeill, breaking and setting records for season and home wins and shutouts. As a result, McNeill won Ivy League Coach of the Year, New England Soccer Journal Coach of the Year, and East Region Staff of the Year.
Jennifer Rockwood
Jennifer Rockwood has been the head coach of BYU’s women’s soccer team since 1995, and for good reason. Rockwood is the only head coach BYU’s women’s program has ever known.
From starting a program to the College Cup, Jen Rockwood has helped turn the BYU Women’s Soccer team into a national championship contender. Best of luck to Coach Rockwood & the Cougars tomorrow in their College Cup debut!! #SheInspires #SheCanCoach pic.twitter.com/XXIOKcyblg
— United Soccer Coaches – Women Coaches Community (@Women_Coaches) December 2, 2021
After starting the team in the mid-90s, Rockwood brought the Cougars to 15 first-place division finishes, totaling over 400 wins in her coaching career. Rockwood’s list of accolades and awards is too long to list, but a few include WAC and MWC Coach of the Year, Women’s Coach of the Year, and National Staff of the Year.
Carin Gabarra
Another former pro player, Carin Gabarra, is a truly stellar coach. She retired from playing soccer in 1996 after winning a FIFA World Cup and a Gold Metal at the Olympics.
🗓 #OTD 1988: Carin Jennings Gabarra recorded the first hat-trick in #USWNT history, powering the USA to a 5-2 win over Japan ⚽️⚽️⚽️ pic.twitter.com/spnSbKQ9QE
— U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (@USWNT) June 1, 2020
Over a few years, Gabarra went from Westmont College to Harvard before settling down at the United States Naval Academy in 1993. During this time, the Navy women’s team played at a club level, but thanks to Gabarra, they are now a D1 NCAA team.
The Midshipmen (the Naval Academy mascot) under Gabarra have become the first women’s team of any sport to compete in an NCAA tournament. Gabarra and the Mids were on an over 20-season hot streak from 1995-2015 and have consistently dominated the Patriot League.
Aliceann Wilber
William Smith’s first and only women’s soccer coach, Aliceann Wilber, has been at the helm since 1980. She has built this DIII program from the ground up and, in just their second appearance at the NCAA tournament, won the whole thing.
Congratulations to William Smith Head Soccer Coach Aliceann Wilber on securing her 600th career victory as the Heron soccer team defeated Ithaca College 2-0! Wilber is now just the second coach in all of NCAA Women’s Soccer with 600 wins, joining North Carolina’s Anson Dorrance. pic.twitter.com/6iI4XZsw3w
— HWS Colleges (@HWSColleges) September 29, 2021
Wilber has netted over 600 wins throughout her career and is one of the most highly respected coaches in the collegiate game. She has the most wins of any DIII women’s soccer coach and was the first woman to win the Bill Jeffrey Award.
She is the first woman to win the NSCAA Division III Women’s Soccer Coach of the Year Award, which she won four times in 1987, 1988, 1991, and 2008.
Amy Reifert
University of Chicago head coach Amy Reifert established a top women’s soccer program in the NCAA Division III. In her over 30-year tenure as head coach, the Maroons advanced to the national semifinals five times and the Sweet 16 13 times.
This week’s #COTW is Amy Reifert!!
Last week, Coach Reifert earned her 400th career victory becoming just the tenth women's soccer coach in NCAA Division III history to reach this coaching milestone! #SheCanCoach pic.twitter.com/dMA8qMdTBR
— United Soccer Coaches – Women Coaches Community (@Women_Coaches) October 26, 2021
She’s another coach on this list to reach over 400 wins. Reifert and UChicago had their best year on record in 2017. During the 2017 season, the Maroon defense ranked fifth in DIII with 18 shutouts. Plus, the offense set school records with 80 goals scored. In the end, the team won seven All-UAA honors and three All-American awards. Reifert was named USC Central Region and UAA Coaching Staff of the Year.
Laurie Darling Gutheil
Looking for her 400th win, Laurie Darling Gutheil is a top D II women’s college soccer coach. With the highest winning percentage in the league for both overall wins and regular season stats, Darling Gutheil has the most wins of any female DII coach. She has made the College of Saint Rose program into a powerhouse.
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The Golden Knights have seen the NE10 Championship tournament every year of its 20 years in the league. In 2011 Darling Gutheil’s Golden Knights unseated the defending national champs, Grand Valley State. They also set a school standard with 90 goals, and finished first in the country for offensive scoring. Darling Gutheil takes pride in the performance of her players on and off the field as she stresses academic and athletic achievement.
Mindy Quigg
Mindy Quigg is Ithaca College’s longest-running and winningest coach to date. Since signing on in 1994, Quigg and her teams have earned over 360 wins and an NCAA playoff seat 21 times. They have made it to the quarterfinals five times and the semis twice since 1996. Although, the Ithaca Boomers have yet to take home the gold. Quigg’s team has made it to the NCAA Championship twice, including this most recent 2021 season.
A huge congratulations to head coach Mindy Quigg who earned her 350th victory today! #GoBombers pic.twitter.com/hiHDsd4sjN
— IC Women's Soccer (@ithaca_wsoccer) September 2, 2021
All of the women’s college soccer coaches on this list coached more than a few All-Americans, future pros, and even world-class medal winners. Collegiate coaching is no joke; it is the ultimate goal for some players and mentors. These women are all crushing it. They’re doing everything in their power to train and nurture the next generation of amazing soccer talent.
Featured image via @BrownU_WSoccer on Twitter
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