Field Hockey Program Overview

Head Coach: Andy Whitcomb | Phone: 413-538-2847 | Email: awhitcom@mtholyoke.edu

The Mount Holyoke field hockey team is known for its strong stick work and tactical skills as well as the depth of its bench. The Lyons have won three NEWMAC Championships (2001, 2003 and 2015), while making five NCAA Division III Tournament appearances (2001, 2003, 2013, 2014 and 2015), including four trips to the Sweet Sixteen. Mount Holyoke made 21 straight appearances in the NEWMAC Tournament between 1999 and 2019.

Program History

Additionally, MHC won the 2002 ECAC New England Division III Championship, as well as the Seven Sisters Championship. The team has also gotten a wealth of international experience, traveling to England, Argentina, South Africa and most recently to China.

The Lyons have seen numerous players garner national, regional and conference recognition, including two-time Longstreth/NFHCA Division III National All-American and three-time NEWMAC All-Conference First Team honoree, Kirsten Kilburn.

Head coach Andy Whitcomb and her staff believe that the program's success is a result of the team's overall strength, not the play of a select few. 

Throughout the busy and highly competitive season, an emphasis on flexibility in system play allows the team to take advantage of players' individual talents. Training begins at the end of August and is designed, in part, to improve players' conditioning and agility. Players work hard, both individually and as a team, to hone stick work and shooting skills and to sharpen defensive tactics. Weight training is an integral part of conditioning.

Incoming recruits are given an explicit summer workout program that includes play of hockey, as well as conditioning and weight training. Most players have at least three years of high school varsity experience. Futures Program participants are encouraged to try out for the team.

As a Mount Holyoke scholar-athlete, you are driven to excel in the athletic arena as well as the classroom and laboratory. The discipline, sense of accomplishment, and competitive edge that you bring to your sport resonate through every channel of your intellectual life.