Field Hockey—Coaches

Tina Cormier begins her second year as head coach of the Colby field hockey program in the 2012-13 academic year.

Cormier helped Providence College field hockey head coach Diane Madl turn the Friars into one of the top teams in the Big East Conference before her arrival at Colby. She is now the eighth head coach in Colby field hockey history dating back to 1968.

Cormier is a native of Ste-Marie de Kent, New Brunswick, Canada, but the past nine years she has lived in Rhode Island and assisted in coaching the Providence field hockey team. She was an assistant coach for six seasons and was then promoted to associate head coach in 2008.

"I am really pleased that Tina accepted the position as our new field hockey coach," Colby Athletics Director Marcella Zalot said. "She has been instrumental in helping to build a very successful program at Providence and is poised to do the same at Colby. Tina has a dynamic personality, she is an incredible recruiter, and she has all the skills and knowledge to lead and elevate our program. I'm excited to work with her and know she will be a wonderful addition to the field hockey program, our department, and the College."

Cormier said she hadn't applied for another job during her time at Providence, but the Colby job was appealing on many levels.

"It gives me a chance to have my own program, to see what I can do," Cormier said. "I also really love the state of Maine and it's about three-and-a-half hours closer to home. I loved the Providence community and it was a great job, but I had a really good feeling when I came to visit Colby for the interview. That was a final piece for me – just to have that right feeling about Colby."

Madl was the head coach at the University of Maine when she met Cormier, who played field hockey for the University of New Brunswick-Fredericton at the time and would scrimmage against the Black Bears.

"Diane took over at Providence and asked me to come down as her assistant, and really I never looked back," Cormier said. "Diane has been such a role model to me and I feel that she has prepared me well for this next stage (of coaching)."

Cormier helped Madl rebuild the Friars into a nationally-recognized program. Providence was in the national rankings from 2006 to 2009 and the Friars made four straight Big East Tournament appearances, including two appearances in the championship game (2006, 2007). The team also was the Big East regular season champion in 2006.

Cormier also has been active with USA Field Hockey as a head coach and assistant. She was an assistant coach in spring 2010 for the Junior High Performance Training Center in the New England Region. Cormier was the Futures Regional Coaching Director for Rhode Island and Connecticut from 2006 to 2009, the National Futures Championship head coach for an under-16 team, and a Futures head coach for a team in Connecticut.

A 2001 graduate of University of New Brunswick-Fredericton with bachelor's degrees in both education and kinesiology, Cormier was the school's Female Athlete of the Year in 2001 and earned the Liz Hoffman Player of the Year Award (Most Valuable Player) as part of the Canadian Inter-University (C.I.A.U.). She earned the Dr. Garnett Copeland Medal Winner as the top all-around athlete at UNB for her play in field hockey and ice hockey.  Cormier was a five-time C.I.A.U. All-Canadian First Team selection in field hockey and a five-time AUAA conference MVP as a forward.

Cormier played on the Canadian Women's Senior National Field Hockey team from 1998 to 2002 and the national junior team from 1994 to 1997. She currently has a Level II USA Field Hockey Coaching Accreditation, the second-highest accreditation in the U.S. system.

Cormier takes over a Colby team looking for a first winning season since 2004. Cormier knows the importance of bringing in quality student-athletes.

"The key for us in rebuilding at Providence was to bring in student-athletes with the drive and motivation to make a difference," Cormier said. "We wanted kids who wanted to put Providence on the map. I love teaching the game and seeing a light bulb going off in the players, to help them become the best that they can be."

Cormier will help out as an assistant coach with the softball team as a secondary duty.

Assistant Coaches

Annie Hansbury, a two-time All-American at University of Massachusetts at Lowell, is in her first year as an assistant coach for the Colby field hockey team.
 
Hansbury, who earned second team Division II All-American honors in 2010 and 2011, will work under Colby second-year head coach Tina Cormier. 

Ashlyn Hudson (Stoughton/Stoughton, Mass.) will enter her second year as an assistant field hockey coach during the 2012-13 academic year.