Tag Removed: Sarah Goodson Named Women's Lacrosse Head Coach At Goucher College

BALTIMORE, Md. - Goucher College Director of Athletics/Associate Dean of Students Andrew Wu has removed the interim tag and named Sarah Goodson the women's lacrosse head coach at Goucher College.

"Despite the interim tag, when we brought Coach Goodson on board she approached all aspects of the position with a long-term mindset," said Wu. "She did a phenomenal job of pulling the team together this spring and despite the challenging circumstances, didn't miss a step in moving the program forward competitively. Our student-athletes have bought into her as a leader and I couldn't be more confident Sarah has what it takes to bring Goucher women's lacrosse to new heights, while ensuring that her players have an enriching experience." 

Goodson took over the women's lacrosse program after the first contest in 2019 and guided the team to an 8-7 during her 15 games as interim head coach including a 5-3 mark at Beldon Field. The Gophers finished 8-8 on the year to notch their first non-losing season since 2016. 

"I am honored to accept the permanent position as head coach of the women's lacrosse program at Goucher College," said Goodson.  "I want to thank athletic director, Andrew Wu, and the rest of the athletic staff for this opportunity. It is a privilege to be part of the Goucher family."

During her first season at Goucher, Goodson saw freshman Julia Gazzola break the single-season draw control record with 96 and junior Shannon Stull reached the 100 mark in goals, points and assists. The team returns its Top-5 scorers for 2020 which accounts for 71.1 percent of the teams goals and 74.2 percent of the teams goals from last season.

"Our improvement during the 2019 season is the just the beginning of what lies ahead," said Goodson. "Leadership from our current players, as well as recruiting talented student athletes will be our road to success. This team is prepared, focused, and ready to build a strong future!"

As an assistant coach at Saint Francis University, a Division I program, Goodson developed and trained a defender that made the German World Cup Team in 2013 and mentored a Northeast Conference Women's Lacrosse Scholar-Athlete of the Year. As a recruiter, she signed three of the five players in the 2015 recruiting class. She is currently the head coach of two girls club teams at the Coppermine Lacrosse Club where she led teams to tournament championships and a qualification for the 2018 USL Nationals.

Goodson got her start in the lacrosse world as an education clinic manager at US Lacrosse. She increased the number of coaching clinics by 40 in one year, recruited 10 new level 1 and 2 trainers for Coaching Education Program and trained over 4,500 new coaches in 2012, growing the number of certified coaches by 33 percent.

During her time as a member of the Salisbury University women's lacrosse team, the Seagulls posted a 40-2 overall mark and a perfect 14-0 record in league play. Salisbury advanced to the NCAA Division III semifinals in her sophomore year, the championship game in her junior campaign and culminated her career with a NCAA Division III national championship thanks to a 7-6 win against Hamilton at Gettysburg College.

Goodson was named an IWLCA First-Team All-American and the womenslacrosse.com Division III Defensive Player of the Year in her final two campaigns while also garnering a Division III All-Region first-team selection in 2009 and a spot on the ECAC Division III All-Metro/South All-Star second team in 2010.

Goodson graduated from Salisbury University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics in 2010.