After winning game number 350, Women’s Head Soccer Coach Denise Lyons took the time to humbly credit her players and staff on the achievement.
It’s been a long road for Lyons to reach 350 wins, and Keene State College has been along for the ride the whole way. As a player, Lyons played soccer at the highest level for the Irish national team. While representing her home country in Ireland, Lyons was scouted by none other than Keene State College in 1986, and received a full scholarship to play soccer as an Owl.
“To be able to come over and get an education was such a wonderful opportunity,” Lyons said.
After playing as an All-American, Lyons became the assistant coach of the squad after graduation, and shortly after that became the full-time head coach. Now in her twenty-fourth year as head coach, Lyons and Keene State women’s soccer made history. On Thursday, October 15, the KSC women defeated Smith College by a score of 3-2 to earn Lyons her historic win.
Photo Editor / Tim Smith
Lyons said she didn’t even know about reaching 350 until that very game, and that the milestone win is not all that matters.
“It’s not all about that,” Lyons said, “It’s about the teams over the years. You obviously can’t do it without good teams and I think the players are the ones that deserve the credit.”
She continued, “I can put them on the field, but they’re the ones that score the goals and win the games so I think that it’s a joint effort [made] by everybody.”
Junior Goalkeeper Danielle Warhall said the team didn’t know about the win until around Lyons’s win number 349 and was excited to get the win against Smith College.
“To be honest it wasn’t our best game,” Warhall said, “We didn’t come out strong in the beginning but we knew it was an important game, and we came out in the second half and really showed up to play and we got the win. It was really exciting to be there for that.”
Senior Midfielder Shannon Summers also commented on the win. She said, “It’s great to be a part of the team to get her another milestone win. My fellow seniors and I were also on the team when she got her three-hundredth win so that’s really special.”
In addition to recognizing her players, Lyons was also appreciative of her assistant coach and KSC’s strength and conditioning coach Sarah Testo.
“I think my assistant coach Sarah Testo, who is my strength and conditioning coach, deserves a lot of credit,” Lyons said. “She’s been with me for many [11] years now …I owe her a lot of credit. She’s been with me through all of the milestones.”
She continued, “For my first one-hundred she [Testo] was a player of mine, and all the way up through three hundred and fifty she’s been with me through all of them and I couldn’t have done it without her. Sarah Testo’s been invaluable to me.”
When asked about her coaching philosophy and her relationship with her players, Lyons said that knowing her players well has been very important. She has a couch in her office and believes in having an open door policy.
“They [the players] can tell me anything and I’ll get them the help they need,” Lyons said. “Whether it might be tutors for academics, or counseling if they’re having issues at home.”
When asked about the same dynamic between Lyons and her players, Warhall said, “We’re all like a family. She [Lyons] tells us ‘I’m your mom away from home,’ so she looks out for us– and she’s there for us, not just on the field but off the field as well.”
Warhall continued, “She’s [Lyons] been very successful, there’s no doubt about that. But I think that former players of hers, coaches that have coached with her, and even coached against her see she really cares about every single game and cares about every single player and their own development, and the team’s development.”
Referring to her coaching style, Lyons said knowing what makes each player different is pivotal in figuring out what motivates them.
“I look at each individual player differently because I think each individual player is different…What might motivate one player definitely doesn’t motivate another player.”
She continued, “How to get your players to get the chemistry to click together is to get to know your players, and find out how they tick, and how you can motivate them.”
When asked what 350 means to her, Lyons simply said, “There’s a lot of people around me [who] I want to give credit to because without them I wouldn’t be as successful as I am.” After winning game number 350, Women’s Head Soccer Coach Denise Lyons took the time to humbly credit her players and staff on the achievement.
It’s been a long road for Lyons to reach 350 wins, and Keene State College has been along for the ride the whole way. As a player, Lyons played soccer at the highest level for the Irish national team. While representing her home country in Ireland, Lyons was scouted by none other than Keene State College in 1986, and received a full scholarship to play soccer as an Owl.
“To be able to come over and get an education was such a wonderful opportunity,” Lyons said.
After playing as an All-American, Lyons became the assistant coach of the squad after graduation, and shortly after that became the full-time head coach. Now in her twenty-fourth year as head coach, Lyons and Keene State women’s soccer made history. On Thursday, October 15, the KSC women defeated Smith College by a score of 3-2 to earn Lyons her historic win.
Lyons said she didn’t even know about reaching 350 until that very game, and that the milestone win is not all that matters.
“It’s not all about that,” Lyons said, “It’s about the teams over the years. You obviously can’t do it without good teams and I think the players are the ones that deserve the credit.”
She continued, “I can put them on the field, but they’re the ones that score the goals and win the games so I think that it’s a joint effort [made] by everybody.”
Junior Goalkeeper Danielle Warhall said the team didn’t know about the win until around Lyons’ win number 349 and was excited to get the win against Smith College.
“To be honest it wasn’t our best game,” Warhall said, “We didn’t come out strong in the beginning but we knew it was an important game, and we came out in the second half and really showed up to play and we got the win. It was really exciting to be there for that.”
Senior Midfielder Shannon Summers also commented on the win, stating, “It’s great to be a part of the team to get her another milestone win. My fellow seniors and I were also on the team when she got her three-hundredth win so that’s really special.”
In addition to recognizing her players, Lyons was also appreciative of her assistant coach and KSC’s strength and conditioning coach Sarah Testo.
“I think my assistant coach Sarah Testo, who is my strength and conditioning coach, deserves a lot of credit,” Lyons said. “She’s been with me for many [11] years now …I owe her a lot of credit. She’s been with me through all of the milestones.”
She continued, “For my first one-hundred she [Testo] was a player of mine, and all the way up through three hundred and fifty she’s been with me through all of them and I couldn’t have done it without her. Sarah Testo’s been invaluable to me.”
When asked about her coaching philosophy and her relationship with her players, Lyons said that knowing her players well has been very important. She has a couch in her office and believes in having an open door policy.
“They [the players] can tell me anything and I’ll get them the help they need,” Lyons said. “Whether it might be tutors for academics, or counseling if they’re having issues at home.”
When asked about the same dynamic between Lyons and her players, Warhall said, “We’re all like a family. She [Lyons] tells us ‘I’m your mom away from home,’ so she looks out for us – and she’s there for us, not just on the field but off the field as well.”
Warhall continued, “She’s [Lyons] been very successful, there’s no doubt about that. But I think that former players of hers, coaches that have coached with her, and even coached against her see she really cares about every single game and cares about every single player and their own development, and the team’s development.”
Referring to her coaching style, Lyons said knowing what makes each player different is pivotal in figuring out what motivates them.
“I look at each individual player differently because I think each individual player is different…What might motivate one player definitely doesn’t motivate another player.”
She continued, “How to get your players to get the chemistry to click together is to get to know your players, and find out how they tick, and how you can motivate them.”
When asked what 350 means to her, Lyons simply said, “There’s a lot of people around me [who] I want to give credit to because without them I wouldn’t be as successful as I am.”
Nick can be contacted at ntocco@kscequinox.com
