COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Boston University assistant coach Tracey Paul has been named the head coach of the U.S. Under-21 Women's National Team, as announced by USA Field Hockey on Friday.
Paul was appointed the U-21 USWNT Head Coach after serving as the assistant in 2019. A native of New Zealand, she began her coaching career in the United States in the San Diego area at San Pasqual High School. Throughout the 1990's, Paul was the head coach of the Southern California Futures site, a regional selector and a National Futures Tournament California team coach. In 1998-99, she worked as an assistant for the U-16 USWNT and served as a coach/selector for the U.S. Men's National Team program. She was honored as the 1997-98 California State Coach of the Year.
Paul is a 21-season veteran of the Boston University coaching staff, helping the Terriers earn a combined 20 conference tournament and regular-season titles as well as eight NCAA Tournament appearances. After serving several years as a coach in New England High Performance, she served as the head coach of the New England Junior High Performance Center in 2016 and 2018. In 2017 and 2018, she coached at the Young Women's National Championship and was the head coach of the New England Junior High Performance squad. From 2015-16, she was an assistant coach for the U-19 USWNT and an assistant for the New England U-16 Team that competed at the 2016 National Futures Championship. Under Paul's tutelage at BU and San Pasqual, several athletes have gone on to earn spots on the USWNT rosters.
"I am thrilled and honored to accept this appointment and continue working with our incredible U-21 athletes," said Paul. "It's exciting to head a group with so much potential while supporting the development of the next generation of USWNT players and building on the work of the athletes and that of the previous head coach, Jarred Martin. I would like to thank USA Field Hockey's leadership for giving me this opportunity and I look forward to moving the U-21 squad ahead on a path to international success."
Paul will coach an individual team at the Young Women's National Championship as well as the U-21 USWNT in a summer series prior to preparation for the women's 2021 Junior Pan American Championship. That tournament will take place August 16 to 29 in Santiago, Chile, and is a qualifier for the Junior World Cup, which will be held in South Africa in December.
