Wake Forest Athletics
Jennifer Averill Named National Coach of the Year
1/14/2003 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Jan. 14, 2003
Wake Forest field hockey coach Jennifer Averill was honored as the 2002 Dita/NFHCA Division I Coach of the Year as announced by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association. This is the first time in her 11-year career that Averill has received the honor.
Averill, the 2002 ACC Coach of the Year, led the Demon Deacons to the ACC Championship as well as their third straight NCAA Semifinals appearance and their first-ever NCAA Championship. After starting the year at 1-2, the Deacs ran off 18 straight victories en route to the national title.
In her 11 years at the Demon Deacon helm, Averill has transformed the program, building a non-scholarship squad into a national powerhouse. In 1994, the Deacs cracked the national rankings for the first time (20th) and have appeared in the top 20 every year since, reaching the number one spot for the first time in 2001. Over the past four years, the two-time ACC Coach of the Year has led the Deacons to a dominant 72-15 record, including a 9-3 record in the NCAA Tournament.
