Old Dominion Athletics announced on May 18 the hiring of Daan Polders as the new assistant coach for its women’s field hockey team. Head coach Andrew Griffiths said that Polders brings more than 30 years of coaching experience to the program, most recently serving five seasons as the inaugural head coach at Mount Olive in North Carolina.
Polders compiled a record of 48-35 during his tenure at Mount Olive and led the Trojans to three conference championships, including back-to-back titles in 2022 and 2023. He was named Coach of the Year both years. His extensive background also includes serving as head coach for the U.S. U-17 Women’s National Field Hockey Team and working with USA Field Hockey since 2003.
“I am so pleased to welcome Daan Polders to ODU, our team, and our community,” said Griffiths. “He has a sterling reputation, and a well-documented history of success as a championship coach. He brings experience from the ACC, Big Ten, a depth of knowledge, and recruiting connections.”
Before joining Mount Olive, Polders worked four years at Villa Maria Academy in Pennsylvania where he guided teams to two state championships and an overall record of 88-6. He also coached at Colorado Academy in Denver for two seasons with perfect records each year (35-0), earning two state championships and Coach of the Year honors.
Polders is originally from the Netherlands and has coached at Division I schools including Wake Forest from 2005-2011 as associate head coach, after starting his collegiate coaching career as an assistant at Michigan State from 2002-2005. During his time with Michigan State, he helped secure three Big Ten regular-season titles and multiple NCAA tournament appearances.
“I feel privileged to be part of this ODU coaching staff. Thanks to Andrew Griffiths and Mimi Smith, I am looking forward to the road ahead of us and working with them and all the athletes,” said Polders.
The Monarchs finished their most recent season with an overall record of 8-10 and went 5-2 in BIG EAST play.
