On May 6, the Kent State Field Hockey program named Heather Hefner as its new coach, the eighth in program history, following KSU parting ways with its previous coach Feb. 27.
“There’s a really solid group that we have here, and getting to make it our own and enter into this next era is really special,” Hefner said. “I think everyone is buying into what we put in front of them.”
Hefner is coming to Kent State not short of experience, as she has been involved in field hockey at the collegiate level for over a decade.
As an athlete, Hefner played for four years at Wake Forest University as a defender, winning an Atlantic Coast Conference championship. She was named a co-captain during her time there and was awarded Wake Forest’s Maria Whitehead Award for her leadership and passion in their program.
She went on to serve an assistant coaching role at Liberty University where she, for six seasons, helped the Flames reach milestones such as making the 2021 NCAA title game and winning three Big East regular season titles.
The Flashes went 8-11 last season, good enough for third in the Mid-American Conference, but the team came up short in the conference title game in a 3-1 loss to Miami University of Ohio.
Hefner is coming off a 17-3 season with Liberty and is looking to bring her knowledge and experience to KSU.
“Some of our most successful teams at Liberty were not always the best on paper, but it was the relentlessness, it was the fight and heart, and that’s what we’re trying to put into these girls,” Hefner said. “A lot of them already have it, it’s just [about] pulling it out of them.”
Field hockey has taken Hefner around the country, and now she is excited for her next journey at Kent.
“I’m super pumped to be here,” Hefner said. “The support from the top down is incredible, and the history and legacy of the program here is really special. We’re looking forward to adding to that.”
The Flashes are bringing in a great defensive mind as Hefner was able to help coach two Big East Defenders of the year, and a Goaltender of the Year.
“I love defense, and there is a cool pride in defense,” Hefner said. “Having the mentality that ‘this is my cage and I’m not letting anyone in it’ is really cool.”
Liberty boasted an impressive +1.85 point differential per game last season– only giving up 0.95 goals to opponents on average while averaging 2.80 goals of their own.
Lizzie Hamlett, someone that Hefner speaks highly of and is very excited to coach with this season, was named an assistant coach for the field hockey program in June.
“It’s really special,” Hefner said. “I got to coach her as an athlete and then work alongside her for a year (at Liberty). She’s a really special person that has some incredible leadership qualities and it’s been really cool to see her step into her own, too, as she’s taken on bigger responsibility.”
Aside from her field hockey coaching, Hefner brings an energy and passion to her that inspires her players to be successful off the field and in the classroom.
“There’s a reason it’s a student-athlete — at the end of the day, they’re going to play field hockey for four years, and they’re going to have a career for the rest of their lives,” Hefner said.
Hefner has adopted what it means to be a Golden Flash and is excited to step into her role in her first head coaching opportunity and first season at Kent State.
“It’s been awesome,” Hefner said. “I’m a firm believer that a head coach is only as good as the people around them.”
Andrew Gold is a reporter. Contact him at [email protected].
