American University

Rachel McCarthy is entering her fourth season as an assistant coach with the American University field hockey team.

Since her arrival in the summer of 2018, American has earned an overall record of 26-17, including an impressive 14-3 run in the Patriot League, and claimed the PL regular season and tournament titles in 2019 to advance to the program's 11 NCAA Tournament.

Individually, she has helped mentor the Eagles to three NFHCA All-American awards, nine All-Region honors, and a staggering six Patriot League Player of the Year awards, including three for Offensive Player of the Year. AU has also earned 13 All-Patriot League selections.

McCarthy has also been key in the Eagles' success in the classroom, as the team earned two Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year selections, eight NFHCA Scholar of Distinction honors, and six Academic All-Patriot League awards alongside the 49 selections to the National Academic Squad. As a team, American has also been awarded three NFHCA National Academic Team Awards.

Prior to AU, McCarthy spent more than two years as an assistant and interim head coach at Ohio University. While with the Bobcats, McCarthy focused on student-athlete mentorship and development and assisted with practice planning and game preparation, while also overseeing recruiting and organizing team travel and equipment. 

In her three seasons at Ohio, McCarthy helped lead the Bobcats to an 18-33 overall record and an 8-10 mark in the Mid-American Conference (MAC). She also mentored three NFHCA (National Field Hockey Coaches Association) All-Region honorees, nine All-MAC selections, three NFHCA Scholars of Distinction, 34 NFHCA Academic Squad members, six MAC Distinguished Scholar-Athletes and 24 Academic All-MAC award winners.

Prior to her time at Ohio, McCarthy coached at the club level with the International Field Hockey Club of Kentucky and Northeast Elite Field Hockey.

A successful student-athlete in her own right, McCarthy began her collegiate career at the University of Massachusetts–Lowell, helping lead the River Hawks to an NCAA Division II national title in 2010 and two national runner-up finishes in 2011 and 2012. As an individual, McCarthy was the 2012 Northeast-10 Student-Athlete of the Year and earned two All-America and Academic All-America selections. 

In 2013, McCarthy transferred to the University of Louisville, where she helped the Cardinals to the 2013 Big East regular-season title and a berth into the 2014 NCAA Tournament. 

McCarthy graduated from Louisville in 2014 with a B.S. in justice administration and went on to earn an M.S. in recreation and sport pedagogy – coaching education from Ohio in 2017.