Jana Woolley was promoted to head coach of the Columbia field hockey program in December 2008 after serving as the Lions’ top assistant coach for two seasons. Woolley came to Columbia after eight seasons as an assistant coach at the University of North Carolina.
It didn’t take long for Woolley’s presence to have a huge impact on the Columbia field hockey program. In her first season as an assistant with the Lions, Woolley coached goaltender Gena Miller ‘09CC to first-team All-Ivy League honors, and All-American recognition by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) and womensfieldhockey.com. Miller became the first ever Columbia field hockey player to earn All-American honors.
During her first two seasons with Columbia, Woolley helped the Lions to back-to-back 11 win seasons. In 2007, she helped guide Columbia to a second place finish in the Ivy League, while the five conference wins that season established a new program best.
Woolley had a highly successful playing career as well. A two-time All-America goalkeeper, she helped UNC to NCAA titles in 1995, ‘96 and ‘97. In the 1996 championship game against Princeton, she earned a 3-0 shutout. Her goals allowed average that season was 0.61, the best in the nation.
Her 46 career shutouts still stand as a UNC and Atlantic Coast Conference record, and her 14 shutouts and goals against average of 0.43 in 1994 both are tied for the school and ACC records. She was named to the ACC 50th Anniversary Team in 2002 and to the NCAA Division I 25th Anniversary Team in 2005.
Then known as Jana Withrow, Woolley earned All-America and All-ACC honors in her junior and senior years and was named All-ACC in 1995, ‘96 and ‘97. She earned a spot on the All-NCAA Tournament team as a sophomore in 1995. Woolley was also honored as the Delaware Athlete of the Year in 1997 and was a member of the U.S. National Team from 1997-2000.
