Carley Kessler enters her fifth season as the head coach of the Hood College field hockey after being hired to rebuild the program in the fall of 2020.
The 2024 season saw yet another nine-win season, this time the Blazers achieved their first win in the MAC Commonwealth since joining in 2012-13 with a 3-1 win over Eastern in October. The squad would follow up with another conference win the next game with a 2-1 win over Albright. The squad had two All-Conference selections in Madeline Moreno on Second Team for leading the conference in defensive saves and Morgan Hackett for Honorable Mention for her offensive play.
The 2023 campaign was highlighted with program record nine-game winning streak and two all-conference selections. The win total (9) and percentage (.500) were the program's best in over two decades.
Defensively, Hood ranked Top 5 in save percentage and saves per game while leading the conference in defensive saves with goalkeeper Richana Brown earning second team conference honors. On the offensive end, freshman Bailey Oberholtzer was runner-up for MAC Commonwealth Freshman of the Year and won Hood Athletics’ Rookie of the Year honors.
Her 12 wins in her first two seasons surpassed the Blazers' total from the previous six seasons combined as she undertakes the rebuilding of the program. It also marked the first time Hood won at least six times in back-to-back seasons since 2000-01. In 2022, Hannah Armstrong finished third in Division III in defensive saves and was the Blazers' first all-conference selection since 2018.
Kessler comes to Hood after spending the past two years as a volunteer coach at Division I Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, her alma mater. In 2019, the Cardinals posted a three-win overall improvement over the previous season and had their best Mid-American Conference record since 2016. The team's four shutouts were the most at Ball State since the 2004 season. The 2019 team had 16 student-athletes on the Zag Field Hockey/NFHCA Division III National Academic Squad and three NFHCA Scholars of Distinction.
Kessler, a native of Williamsburg, Virginia, has worked numerous camps in the Mid-Atlantic region, including the High Intensity Training Camp (Manheim, Pennsylvania), Focus College Select Camp (Richmond, Virginia) and the Georgetown Camp (Washington, D.C.).
Kessler earned All-Mid-American Conference Second Team at midfielder as a senior after leading the Cardinals in points. She was a standout in the classroom, as well, where she earned Academic All-Mid-American Conference honors and National Scholar of Distinction from the NFHCA.
Kessler graduated from Ball State in 2018 with a Bachelor of Science degree in exercise science and a minor in coaching. She earned her Master of Science degree in exercise physiology from BSU in 2020.
| Season |
Overall |
Pct. |
Conference |
Pct. |
Postseason / Notes |
| 2020 |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
No season (COVID-19) |
| 2021 |
6-12 |
.333 |
0-8 |
.000 |
|
| 2022 |
6-12 |
.333 |
0-8 |
.000 |
|
| 2023 |
9-9 |
.500 |
0-7 |
.000 |
Best program record since 1999 |
| 2024 |
9-9 |
.500 |
2-5 |
.429 |
First Conference win in MAC |
| Totals |
30-42 |
.416 |
2-28 |
.067 |
|
