Missy Meharg Position: Head Coach Experience: 20th Year Alma Mater: Delaware '85

A program rich with a winning tradition, no other figure in Maryland field hockey has exemplified that tradition better than head coach Missy Meharg as she heads into her 20th season. Voted National Coach of the Year an unprecedented six times, Meharg has solidified Maryland's position among the top field hockey programs in the nation, leading the team to back-to-back NCAA Championships for the first time and the program's fifth overall in 2005 and 2006.

With a firm grasp on national top five for at least a decade, Meharg has led the Terrapins to four of the program's five national titles, while serving as an assistant coach during the team's first run in 1987. In her 19 years, the team has reached the national semifinals 10 times, including the last four years in a row, a first for the program. Maryland has also advanced to the national championship game six times under the legendary coach.

Competing in the toughest conference in the nation, Meharg has also mentored the Terps to six ACC Tournament titles and five regular season crowns. Her teams have also had six 20-win seasons, including three in the last four years.

Despite all the successes, Meharg has not slowed in her efforts to lure top talent to College Park and mentor them to success. Her players have garnered three Honda Awards, presented to the nation's most outstanding player, 70 All-Americans, seven ACC Players of the Year, six ACC Rookies of the Year, eight ACC Tournament MVP's, 69 All-ACC performers and over 100 National Academic Squad honorees.

Meharg has developed 40 Terrapins who have reached the highest level of field hockey, with 40 players competing internationally, including five players who are members of the 2007 U.S. National Team.

Meharg can be described as a leader, a motivator and a mentor. Her six National Field Hockey Coaches Association National Coach of the Year citations are unmatched by any coach in the country. She became the winningest coach at Maryland in 1998, surpassing her mentor Sue Tyler's 153 victories. Now, she has posted over 300 victories, which ranks among the top 20 winningest coaches in NCAA history.

Accolades have come in the form of six NFHCA Coach of the Year awards (1991, 1993, 1999, 2001, 2005, 2006), four ACC Coach of the Year honors (1992, 1995, 1998, 2001) and 10 Mid-Atlantic Regional Coach of the Year citations for Meharg. She captured her 300th-career win on the day the Terps defeated Wake Forest for the program's sixth conference title in College Park and is one of six Division I head coaches to win over 300 games.

Though Meharg's numbers are extraordinary, her leadership is much more. As a serious educator through sport, she recognizes the ability of athletic competition to teach life lessons. The mentor emphasizes the characteristics of sports that can be used as a vehicle to develop a meaningful life.

"Establishing a hard working, compassionate environment which assists to teach women in `becoming' confident female leaders through their roles as a member of the Maryland field hockey team," says Meharg. "Coaching with enthusiasm, building a community and establishing a mindset of service models the ultimate success."

During her tenure at Maryland, she has been involved in all facets of collegiate field hockey. She currently serves on the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Advisory Committee. In 1996, Meharg served as an assistant coach as former Terp All-American Kate Kauffman-Beach and the U.S. squad competed in the Olympic Games in Atlanta.

The Terps have been represented in the Olympics, the Pan American Games, the World Cup, the Olympic Qualifying Tournament and a number of other international competitions. In 2003, former Terp All-Americans Kauffman-Beach, Dina Rizzo and Keli Smith participated in the Pan American Games. Paula Infante participated in the games as a member of the Chilean National Team. Rizzo and former Terrapins Sarah Silvetti and Lauren Powley helped the U.S. qualify for the 2006 World Cup then placed sixth in the tournament, the second-best showing since 1994 where Meharg assisted the team to a bronze medal.

Meharg is an accomplished and experienced coach on the international stage. She was a member of the U.S. National Team's coaching staff from 1993-1997, which included her appearance in the 1996 Olympics, the 1994 World Cup in Dublin, Ireland, and the 1995 Pan American Games in Argentina. In 1994 and 1995, she served as the head coach for the U.S. Under-21 team. After a hiatus, she returned to the U.S. Field Hockey elite level program in 2004, coaching on both the senior and junior national team selection programs. She was named head coach of the Maryland High Performance Center, establishing the Field Hockey & Lacrosse Complex as an east coast national training site. Her HPC Thundersticks squad won the USFHA National Women's Tournament in the summer of 2006.

During her career, Meharg has been extensively involved with teaching in the U.S. Field Hockey Association Coaching Certification Program. She has completed several certification programs which are directed by the Federation of International Hockey (F.I.H.). Meharg enjoyed doing color commentary work for television and has worked a variety of sports, including field hockey. She has completed four instructional field hockey coaching video with Championship Productions.

Meharg's collegiate playing career was nearly as successful as her coaching career is now. She was an All-America forward at the University of Delaware, where she also played lacrosse, from 1981-85. Meharg was a Honda Award nominee in field hockey in 1983, the same year she was named MVP of the East Coast Conference after leading her team in goals, assists and points. The Blue Hen hockey team reached the NCAA Championship semifinal round when she was a sophomore in 1982, and Meharg's lacrosse squad won the national championship the following spring.

Meharg enjoyed an impressive seven-year playing career with the U.S. National Team from 1985-91. During that time, she was a member of the 1986 World Cup team and an alternate to the 1987 Pan American and 1988 Olympic teams. She capped her playing career as a member of the 1991 Pan American team and the 1991 U.S. squad that unfortunately missed qualifying for the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona.

Meharg earned a bachelor's degree in health and physical education from Delaware in 1985 and her master's degree in sports psychology from Maryland in 1989. She is the mother of two sons: 16-year old Andre, who attends Archbishop Spalding, and 15-year old Genya, who is a freshman at Severna Park High School.

Meharg's Coaching Record

Year	Institution	Record	Pct.	Postseason
1988	Maryland	11-9-2	.545	NCAA First Round
1989	Maryland	11-8-1	.575
1990	Maryland	11-6-2	.632	NCAA First Round
1991	Maryland	17-5-1	.761	NCAA Semifinals
1992	Maryland	15-5-1	.738	ACC Champion, NCAA Second Round
1993	Maryland	21-3-0	.875	NCAA Champion
1994	Maryland	10-9-2	.526
1995	Maryland	19-5-0	.792	NCAA Finals
1996	Maryland	15-7-0	.681	NCAA Second Round
1997	Maryland	18-4-0	.818	NCAA Second Round
1998	Maryland	16-6-0	.727	NCAA Champion, NCAA Second Round
1999	Maryland	24-1-0	.960	ACC Champion, NCAA Champion
2000	Maryland	19-4-0	.826	ACC Champion, NCAA Semifinal
2001	Maryland	20-4-0	.833	ACC Champion, NCAA Final
2002	Maryland	17-5-0	.773	NCAA Second Round
2003	Maryland	20-4-0	.833	NCAA Semifinal
2004	Maryland	17-6-0	.739	NCAA Semifinal
2005	Maryland	23-2-0	.920	ACC Champion, NCAA Champion
2006	Maryland	23-2-0	.920	NCAA Champion
19 Years		327-95-9	.769	4 NCAA Championships
				6 ACC Championships

Meharg's Milestone Victories

Win #	Date	Date
1	Sept. 6, 1988	Maryland 6, Loyola 1
25	Sept. 18, 1990	Maryland 6, Towson 0
50	Nov. 24, 1991	Maryland 2, Penn State 1 (OT)
75	Oct. 10, 1993	Maryland 2, Rutgers 0
100	Sept. 16, 1995	Maryland 5, SW Missouri 0
125	Oct. 26, 1996	Maryland 3, Duke 1
150	Sept. 7, 1997	Maryland 4, Michigan State 1
153*	Sept. 20, 1998	Maryland 3, Massachusetts 0
175	Oct. 9, 1999	Maryland 4, Rutgers 1
200	Oct. 11, 2000	Maryland 6, Rutgers 3
225	Nov. 10, 2001	Maryland 7, Fairfield 1
250	Sept. 14, 2003	Maryland 7, Pacific 0
275	Oct. 9, 2005	Maryland 5, Duke 4 (OT)
300	Nov. 6, 2005	Maryland 3, Wake Forest 2
225	Nov. 12, 2006	Maryland 1, Penn State 0

* Became Maryland's all-time winningest coach

The Meharg Field Hockey Legacy at Maryland
Coaching Accolades
Six-time NFHCA Division I Coach of the Year (1991, '93, '99, 2001, '05, '06)
Four-time ACC Coach of the Year (1992, '95, '98, 2001)
10-time Mid-Atlantic Regional Coach of the Year (1990, '91, '92, '93, '95, '99, 2001, '02, '05, '06)
Maryland's All-Time Winningest Coach with 327 Victories

Team Accolades
Four-time NCAA Champions (1993, 1999, 2005, 2006)
Six-time ACC Champions (1993, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2005)
Six-time NCAA Finalists (1993, 1995, 1999, 2001, 2005, 2006)
10-time NCAA Semifinalists (1991, '93, '95, '99, 2000, '01, '03, '04, '05, '06)
17 NCAA Tournament Appearances (1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006)

Player Accolades
70 All-America Selections
111 NHFCA National Academic Squad Selections
68 All-ACC Selections
190 ACC Academic Honor Roll Selections
13 Players on the U.S. National Team
8 ACC Tournament MVP Selections
7 ACC Player of the Year Selections (2 Defensive)
4 World Cup team members
6 ACC Rookie of the Year Selections
6 Pan American team members
1 Player on the 1996 U.S. Olympic Team
3 Honda Award Winners

Welsh & Infante Win Honda Award
In 2001, defensive back Autumn Welsh became the first athlete under Missy Meharg to be recognized as the national player of the year. Welsh was named the recipient of the prestigious Honda Award, marking the first time in Maryland field hockey history that a Terps attained the honor.

After leading the Terps to back-to-back NCAA Championships in 2005 and 2006, defensive midfielder Paula Infante earned the honor both years, becoming only the third field hockey player in the history of the award to win it multiple times. Infante went on to be a top-five finalist for the coveted Honda-Broderick Cup, presented to the NCAA's Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year across all sports.

Infante (2005, 06), Welsh (2001) and women's lacrosse standout Jen Adams (2000, 2001) are the only Honda Award recipients in Maryland athletics history.

 

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