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Coaches

Head Coach: Steve Jennings
Assistant Coaches: Sarah Thorn, Maureen Breslin
Volunteer Assistant: Magdalena Aguilar

Steve Jennings Position: Head Coach Alma Mater : University of Maryland '97 Experience: Sixth Season

In his sixth year as head field hockey coach at American University, Steve Jennings has established himself as one of the nation’s premier coaches, earning both the respect of his players and his peers. Named DITA/NFHCA Mid-Atlantic Coach of the Year and the Patriot League Coach of the Year for 2003, Jennings led his team to their first-ever Patriot League Championship and the teams’ first-ever berth to the NCAA tournament. In addition, Jennings’ team finished the 2003 season ninth on the NCAA Field Hockey Ratings Percentage Index, the highest in the programs’ history.

Bringing in eight new players to the program in 2003, including two international standouts, Jennings led his team to a 17-4 overall record and a perfect 6-0 regular season record in the Patriot League. Playing some of the nations top teams, such as Maryland, Richmond and Duke, the Eagles were recognized on the STX/NFHCA Division I Coaches Poll Top 20 for the final five weeks of the season.

Also in 2003, under the guidance of Jennings, junior Javiera Villagra became the programs third All-American, as well as a member of the STX/NFHCA Division I All-Region First Team, in just her first year as an Eagle. Joining Villagra on the All-Region First Team was another newcomer, freshman Camila Infante, who was also honored by the Patriot League as the Rookie of the Year, after scoring eight goals and 11 assists.

In addition to leading two newcomers to success, seniors Laura Miller and Melissa Snyder both benefited from Jennings coaching, leading the team and helping the Eagles to one of the most successful seasons in school history. As a four-year starter in the Eagles cage, Miller finished her season with 10 shutouts and ranked second in the nation in save percentage and third in goals against average. Honored as a member of the STX/NFHCA Division I All-Region Second Team, Miller also excelled in the classroom as the 2003 Patriot League Field Hockey Scholar Athlete of the Year, finishing the fall with a 3.88 grade point average in political science.

Snyder, the Patriot League Tournament’s Most Valuable Player, was honored along with Miller to participate in the prestigious STX/NFHCA Division I North/South Senior All-Star Game that brings together the nation’s top senior field hockey players. In her final year as an Eagle, Snyder closed out her career with the eighth highest point total and the teams’ leading point scorer for the season.

In 2002, Jennings led the Eagles to a 9-9 record and a second place finish in the Patriot League Championship, while all-around star Magdalena Aguilar was named to the STX/NFHCA North/South Senior All-Star South squad, as well as to the STX/NFHCA Mid-Atlantic First Team Regional All-American for the fourth straight year. The Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year finished second in the league in scoring and closed out her career at AU as the program’s second-leading scorer with 53 career goals for 125 career points.

In 2001, their first season in the Patriot League, the Eagles finished 4-3 in the league and 8-9 overall, falling to Lafayette as the third seed in the Patriot League Championships by a 1-0 margin in semifinal action. The Eagles were impressive in 2000, achieving their eighth 10-win season, posting a 10-7 overall record in their final season in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA).

In 1999, his first season with the Eagles, Jennings guided American to an 8-8 record, while Aguilar and Jhanna Savino went to on to earn All-CAA First Team and NFHCA Regional All-America honors. Aguilar was also named the CAA’s Co-Rookie of the Year.

Coordinating with his duties at American, Jennings was also named a member of the U.S. Women’s National Team coaching staff in both 2001 and 2002, and has helped the U.S. earn the final bid for the World Cup. In November 2002, he traveled to Perth, Australia, where the United States finished ninth of 16 teams at the World Cup. Jennings has also coached the national team at the Championships Challenge in South Africa and at the World Cup Qualifier in England. Among his other destinations with the national team have been Holland, Germany, New Zealand and India.

No stranger to competition himself, Jennings is considered one of the finest U.S. Field hockey players. He was a member of the U.S. Men’s National from 1991 to 1999 and participated in 91 international test matches. He represented the United States in the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta, where he was vice captain and logged the most playing time on the team.

Jennings took a bronze medal in the 1995 Pan-American Games and helped the United States to fifth in the 1999 Pan-American Games. He also participated in eight United States Olympic Festivals and won three gold and two silver medals. In addition, he was the first U.S. athlete to compete in the highest Dutch division. Jennings was a member of the Athlete Representation to the U.S. Field Hockey Association Board from 1993 to 2000 and chaired a clinic on video analysis at the 1999 and 2000 NCAA Field Hockey Final Fours.

A native of Bethesda, Md., Jennings spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. There he helped guide the Buckeyes to three top-three finishes in the Big Ten Conference and several national rankings. In 1996, Jennings helped lead the Buckeyes to a No. 13 national ranking and a second-place finish in the Big Ten. In his three years at Ohio State, he oversaw many different facets of the program, ranging from individual tactical and technical skill sessions to match preparation and recruiting.

Prior to his tenure at Ohio state, Jennings served as an assistant at American and helped guide the Eagles to their first-ever national ranking (15th) and first-ever victory over then-No. 1 Old Dominion. He also coached the North squad at the 1999 North-South All-Star Game and was an assistant coach with the U-16 Tidewater Tempest, a U.S. Field Hockey summer league team in Holland.

A 1997 graduate of the University of Maryland with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, Jennings began his career playing with the Greenwich Field Hockey Club in New York. In 1987 he was selected for the U.S. Junior National Team and participated in the 1989 Junior World Cup in Ipoh, Malaysia.

He is a 1987 graduate of Walter Johnson High School in Bethesda, Md., and currently resides in Washington, D.C.