A 22-Year-Old Head Coach? North Carolina Didn’t Think Twice About It.

Less than three months after winning a national title as a star player, Erin Matson made the short walk—and quantum leap—from the Tar Heels’ locker room to the coaches’ office.

Pat Forde


Erin Matson speaks in a press conference after North Carolina field hockey wins the national title. Matson led the Tar Heels to an undefeated national title in November, graduated in December, and was announced as the head coach on Jan. 31. Jeffrey A. Camarati/UNC Athletic Communications

Two days into the job, the new coach of North Carolina field hockey walks down the stairs at the team’s facility and greets a visitor with a firm handshake, an easy smile and an offer to tour the building. An engaging guide, she points out all the features of a facility that is commensurate with the Tar Heels’ standing as the best program in the country, having won four of the last five NCAA championships. She laughs about her first contribution as head coach: buying some small trash cans for the locker room.