YEAR AT W&L 9th (2015)
RECORD AT W&L 100-43 (53-10 ODAC)
ALMA MATER Centre College '04
Gina Wills is in her ninth season as the head coach of the Washington and Lee field hockey program. Over her eight seasons, the Generals have compiled a 100-43 (.699) record and claimed the fourth ODAC title in program history in 2022. W&L also advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament on three occasions including for the first time in school history in 2017 and fell in the NCAA Regional Finals in 2021.
The team has made it to the conference title game in six of the eight seasons during Wills' tenure, including most recently during the 2022 season where the Blue and White earned the #1 seed in the conference tournament seedings. This includes three straight from 2015-17, which is the first time in W&L history the field hockey team made three straight championship games and then again from 2020-22.
Over her eight seasons, the Generals are 53-10 (.841) in league play Wills has been named the Coach of the Year on four occasions. Wills has coached six All-America honorees, 15 All-Region citations, and 38 All-ODAC laurels.
In her first year, Wills led the Generals to an 11-7 overall record and the top seed in the ODAC Tournament with a 6-1 conference record. It marked the first time W&L was the No. 1 seed in the league tournament since 2005. Wills was named the ODAC Coach of the Year following the season.
Wills came to W&L from DePauw University in Greencastle, Ind., where she served as the head field hockey coach for eight years. In that time, she guided the Tigers to a 121-40 (.752) overall record, four regular-season conference titles and three conference tournament championships.
Wills was named the 2012 National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year and the 2012 North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Coach of the Year after leading DePauw to a 21-2 record. The Tigers advanced to the NCAA Semifinals before falling to eventual National Champion, Tufts University. She led her 2013 team back to the NCAA Tournament, while her 2014 team finished 16-3 and fell in the NCAC Semifinals. Her teams received the NFHCA National Academic Award in each of her eight seasons, while she mentored her athletes to seven NFHCA All-America selections, including a pair of first team honorees. Three of her athletes were named the Great Lakes Region Player of the Year, while seven players in the NFHCA Senior All-Star game.
Active in the sport, Wills has been a coach for the United States Field Hockey Association Futures Program since 2007 and she has served on numerous committees, including the NFHCA All-America Committee, the Senior All-Star Game Committee and the Coach of the Year Committee. She was also part of the NCAA Field Hockey Great Lakes Regional Advisory Committee.
Prior to her time at DePauw, Wills was an assistant field hockey coach at Washington & Jefferson College (2006-07) and Earlham College (2004-06). She is a 2004 graduate of Centre College with a bachelor of arts in English with a minor in history. She lettered in both field hockey and softball, serving as a two-year captain in field hockey and earning second team all-region accolades as a junior.
WILLS YEAR-BY-YEAR AT W&L
YEAR | RECORD | ODAC RECORD | ACCOMPLISHMENTS | |
2022 | 17-3 | 7-1 | ODAC Champions, ODAC Coach of the Year, NCAA Second Round | |
2021 | 18-1 | 9-0 | ODAC Champions, ODAC Coach of the Year, NCAA Regional Finals | |
Spring 2021 | 8-2 | 7-1 | ||
2019 | 10-8 | 6-2 | ||
2018 | 8-10 | 5-3 | ||
2017 | 15-5 | 7-0 | ODAC Championship, NCAA Second Round, ODAC Coach of the Year | |
2016 | 13-7 | 6-2 | ||
2015 | 11-7 | 6-1 | ODAC Coach of the Year | |
8 SEASONS | 100-43 (.699) | 53-10 (.841) | 3 ODAC Titles, 3 NCAA Bids, 4 ODAC Coach of the Year Awards | |
CAREER | 168-69 (.709) | 16 Seasons |
Donnelly is in her first season as the W&L field hockey assistant coach for the 2022 season.
Donnelly comes to W&L after having spent the last year as the Assistant Field Hockey Coach & Recruiting Coordinator at Oberlin College. In her role, Donnelly constructed scouting reports, conducted 1-on-1 individual practice and film sessions, wrote all practice plans and specifically worked with the forwards and goalkeepers. As the Recruiting Coordinator, Donnelly also attended NFHCA and USAFH recruiting tournaments and brought in the largest recruiting class for the program in recent years.
Prior to her time at Oberlin, Donnelly spent a season as the assistant coach for the Lebanon Valley College field hockey team, where she led team and 1-on-1 film sessions and assisted the head coach with all day-to-day operations.
Donnelly earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Management and Sport Management at Wittenberg University, where she was also a four-year letterwinner on the field hockey team. On the field, Donnelly tallied the sixth-most goals in Wittenberg program history (46) and also finished tied for the sixth most points in program history (103). Donnelly was a two-year team captain, four-time All-NCAC and two-time all-region selection, and she was also named the 2015-16 SAAC Newcomer of the year.