Stephanie Ricketts Nominated for NCAA Division III LGBTQ Athletics Administrator/Coach/Staff of the Year Award

INDIANAPOLIS - Goucher College women's soccer head coach Stephanie Ricketts '07 is one of six nominees nationally for the 2022 NCAA Division III LGBTQ Athletics Administrator/Coach/Staff of the Year Award.

The NCAA Division III LGBTQ Athletics Administrator/Coach/Staff of the Year Award recognizes and honors the service, leadership and promotion of LGBTQ inclusion by an LGBTQ athletics administrator, coach or staff member in Division III.

"I'm honored to be nominated this award.  I feel fortunate to work in an environment where inclusivity is important and being yourself is celebrated.  I'm very proud of the work that the student-athletes in our program put into our Play for Pride game and how invested they were in raising money for the Trevor Project," said Ricketts, who enters her sixth season as head coach of the Gophers in 2022.  "LGBTQ+ visibility and support in athletics is important and I look forward to continuing to promote and advocate for LGBTQ+ coaches, staff, and student-athletes."

"While our entire staff does a fantastic job of working towards an environment that celebrates LGBTQ+ inclusion, Coach Ricketts' #playwithpride event stood out as a special moment last year.," said Goucher Director of Athletics Andrew Wu.  "The entire team came together in a strong show of our values and made a difference, raising meaningful funds for the Trevor Project."

This past season, the Goucher women's soccer team partnered with United Soccer Coaches in its Play With Pride initiative for a Play With Pride game on September 25 against Elizabethtown.  During that game, the team also raised $1,002 for The Trevor Project, which is the world's largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ young people.

The award winner, along with the winners of the NCAA LGBTQ Student-Athlete of the Year Award as well as the LGBTQ Athletics Department/Conference of the Year Award, will be notified in October and will be announced and publicly recognized in conjunction with the 2023 NCAA Convention in San Antonio on Friday, January 13.

Goucher women's soccer at its 2021 Play With Pride game.