Valerie Lohr was named the first head coach in the history of the Allegheny field hockey program on December 21, 2017. A field hockey and lacrosse standout as a student-athlete at Lehigh University and a member of the Dickinson College Athletic Hall of Fame, Lohr boasts a resumé that includes over a decade of field hockey coaching experience at both the collegiate and high school levels.
In the inaugural season for the team, Lohr led the Gators to the program's first victory on Sunday, Sept. 29, 2019, when Allegheny blanked Ferrum (Va.), 4-0, on the Blue Turf at the Robertson Athletic Complex. The first North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) victory for the first-year program was earned on Wednesday, Oct. 23, a 3-0 shutout against Oberlin. A pair of Gators earned All-NCAC honors in the opening season, while Kierstin Faw '21 was tabbed all-region. Additionally, the team was earned a National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Academic Squad honor and 10 student-athletes were named to the NFHCA's Academic Squad. Lohr was also chosen by her peers in the NCAC as the league's Field Hockey Chairwoman.
Lohr is a member of both the United States Field Hockey Association and the NFHCA, which she chairs the Nominating Committee and serves on the All-American Oversight Committee and Senior Game Committee. She was also chosen to speak at the 2020 National All Sports Coaches Summit.
In addition to her coaching duties at Allegheny, Lohr also serves as an adjunct professor in Education Studies.
Prior to Allegheny, Lohr spent the 2017 season as head coach at Shady Side Academy in Pittsburgh. The Indians finished 12-3-1 overall, and advanced to the championship round of the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL) Class-A playoffs. The Indians outscored their opponents a combined 70-18 on the season, with the defense posting seven shutouts, and the offense scoring eight or more goals in six different matches. Five Shady Side players earned All-WPIAL accolades.
Lohr is no stranger to starting a program, as she named the first field hockey coach in program history at Pace University in 2014, while also serving as the compliance director at the NCAA Division II school in Pleasantville, New York. In Pace’s inaugural 2015 season, Lohr guided the Setters to a 6-12 record against a demanding schedule that included matches against seven teams ranked in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association top-20, highlighted by a victory over eighth-ranked LIU-Post. Two Pace players were named All-Northeast 10 Conference, while Halley Rose was named to the Synapse Sports All-Rookie Team, and Margaret McLean was a First Team All-Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) selection. The Settlers were also one of the top performing teams academically in the NE-10, as 19 players landed on the conference’s academic honor roll for holding grade-point averages over 3.0.
From 2007-10, Lohr worked as assistant coach at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, N.J., assisting in all aspects of the program including game strategy, practice planning, budgeting, recruiting, scouting, film evaluation, strength and conditioning, and camp/clinic administration. In her four seasons on the staff, the Ducks went a combined 60-29 overall and 20-4 in Empire 8 Conference play, including undefeated conference marks in both 2008 and ‘09. The Ducks made three straight NCAA tournament appearances from 2008-10, and picked up first round victories in both 2008 and 2010.
Lohr began her coaching career in August 2003 with a four-year stint at Dickinson College, serving as an assistant for both the Red Devils' field hockey and women's lacrosse programs. With the field hockey team, she assisted in all aspects of the program, primarily working with goalkeepers, while also developing game and practice planning, and player training and conditioning. In 2018, she was inducted into the Dickinson Athletic Hall of Fame as part of the Red Devils' 2006 women's lacrosse team, which was ranked 13th in the nation after finishing 13-4 and advancing to the second round of the NCAA Division III playoffs.
Lohr has also been very active in coaching at the youth and club levels. In 2009, she was head coach of the Region 6 US Field Hockey Association Futures Program under-16 squad, while she also worked as assistant coach for Somerset, New Jersey-based Edge Field Hockey Club from June 2007-August 2009.
In 2011, she was an assistant coach and head trainer for the Region 5 United State Field Hockey Association (USFHA) Futures Program, before spending two years as a coach for the Revolution Field Hockey Camps in Fairfield, Connecticut. She also was an assistant coach and head trainer for under-16 players in the USFHA Region 4 Futures Program from January-December 2015.
Lohr played both field hockey and lacrosse at Lehigh University. She was selected to the 2001 Patriot League Academic Honor Roll, and received the COACHES Award for leadership excellence, and the Treen Scholarship for Academic Merit. After graduating in 2002 with a double major in Political Science and History, she went on to earn a Juris Doctorate Degree from Penn State’s Dickinson School of Law and admission to the Pennsylvania Bar in 2006. In 2020, she began pursuing a master's degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. She also serves as an adjunct faculty member and the Title IX Deputy at Allegheny.
Allegheny Career Coaching Highlights
2019
All-Region: Kierstin Faw (2nd)
Two All-NCAC selections: Kierstin Faw (2nd), Hallie Reiger (HM)
