July 11, 2006

EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan State field hockey program recently announced the addition of Ashley Egland to its coaching staff. Egland will serve as an assistant coach, working primarily with the goal keeping unit. Egland joins first-year head coach Rolf van de Kerkhof and first-year assistant coach Helen Knull on the Spartan staff.

"I am very excited to become part of the Michigan State field hockey program and the university," Egland commented. "The Spartan field hockey program has such a rich tradition of success. It is an honor to work with such a diverse coaching staff."

Egland arrives to MSU after spending the 2005 season as an assistant coach at St. Lawrence, while also working towards a master's degree in education administration. With the Saints, Egland specialized in goalie training and was in involved in all facets of the field hockey program including recruiting, conditioning and practice planning.

A goaltender at the University of Massachusetts from 2000 through 2003, Egland led the Atlantic 10 with a 0.43 goals against average and a .940 save percentage as a sophomore, owning the 15th best save percentage in the nation. She helped guide UMass to the NCAA Tournament and started all 21 games in 2002. As a junior, she played in 19 games, starting 11. Egland earned academic all-conference honors in each of her seasons, garnering A-10 Player of the Week accolades twice in her career.

"It is very exciting to have a person like Ashley joining our program," van de Kerkhof stated. "She was an outstanding goalie at UMass, leading her team to multiple conference championships and NCAA appearances, and I expect her experience to show in her coaching. Ashley herself has been fortunate to play for and be trained by two former Olympians. She is very driven and has a true passion for the game. She wants to go all the way in coaching and reach the highest point of success."

"I am looking forward my experience at Michigan State," Egland stated. "With one upperclassman and two freshmen vying for the goalkeeper position, we are starting fresh and will be able to work with the athletes from the beginning. Rolf has extensive knowledge in the position and in training as well, so it is going to be a fun challenge to mold our younger players into great goalies."

Prior to her stint at St. Lawrence, Egland served one season as the head field hockey coach at Wheelock College, a Division III school in the Boston area. Her background also includes a year of coaching high school at the varsity and junior varsity levels, as well as numerous clinics and summer camps. She earned a bachelor of science in sport management from UMass's Isenberg School of Management in May of 2004.