July 30, 2012
By Greg Kincaid, Penn State Athletic Communications Assistant
There comes times in life where we have to set aside our passions, hobbies and even careers for the most important thing in life: Family. In her sixth season at the helm of the Penn State women's soccer program, head coach Erica Walsh can tell you herself that she knows a lot about family.
An assistant coach for the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team since 2008, Walsh decided to step away from joining the team at this year's Olympic Games with good intentions.
"My family is the most important thing in my life. I was very fortunate to be provided an opportunity to go to the Olympics for the second time. Unfortunately my mom has fallen ill and she is battling illness. The good news is that she is a fighter and she has passed that on to me as well. I want to be here to support my mom because family is the most important thing in my life."
Walsh's mother, Jeanne, is currently battling cancer. Walsh describes her mother, who is nurse by trade and somebody that has worked in hospice her entire life, as her rock and inspiration. In fact, she has used her mother as not only a mentor her entire life, but as a symbol and example for what she looks for in recruits.
"My mom is a winner, she's a fighter," says Walsh. "She has the same qualities that I recruit for in student athletes, whether it's a winner in the classroom or on the field, a leader or someone involved in community service. Those are the most important qualities."
Walsh's parents split time between their residences in Chattanooga, Tenn. and State College, Pa. Her father, Cal, is a Penn State alum and the two were married in Happy Valley. Despite her mom's current health, Walsh is convinced that the two of them will be making it up to Penn State for some games this year. Cal and Jeanne are also avid supporters of Penn State women's soccer and active members in the booster club. Walsh says the way she was raised by her parents has helped her translate it into her student athletes today.
"My family is the most important thing to me," says Walsh. "When I have difficult choices to make, I use that to guide me through those difficult choices such as this situation. It really isn't a choice when dealing with a loved one. I was raised in a wonderful home and a plan to carry on those lessons. It's the way I treat my student athletes and the people around me, the way the parents treated me."
Beginning in the spring of 2004, Walsh joined U.S. Soccer and the Under-19 team as an assistant coach for the Under-19 World Cup, where the team eventually finished with a bronze medal. In January of 2008, Walsh was named as the assistant coach by Pia Sundhage for the U.S. National Team. With Walsh's help and guidance the U.S. team completed its historic run with a gold medal at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. Even sweeter was that Walsh's main responsibility was the U.S. defense, which held fellow world power Brazil scoreless in the gold medal match.
During the 2011 summer, Walsh had an extraordinary experience of being one of the top assistants to Sundhage and the U.S. team at the FIFA World Cup in Germany. The U.S. made a sparkling run through knockout play to the final, falling to eventual champions Japan in penalty kicks following a 2-2 draw.
As she has always shown through her great commitment and work ethic with U.S. Soccer, Walsh plans on remaining heavily involved.
"I have been fortunate enough to be involved with the U.S. program since 2004," she says. "I have every intention to continue on with that program. I've had the pleasure of working with some of the best coaches in the world through those opportunities. I believe that has made me the person and coach that I am today."
Walsh has made trips to Tennessee to check in with her mom. A reliable coaching staff has allowed her to do that along with coaching for U.S. Soccer. With the recent promotions of Ann Cook to associate head coach and Tim Wassell to full-time assistant coach, Walsh feels blessed to have one of the best staffs in the country.
"Tim's attention to detail, focus and thorough determination to make this the best program in the country has been a huge help during this time," says Walsh. "He has been a huge addition to this staff and the recruiting perspective."
"Ann could run the best soccer program in the county, and she has," Walsh said of Cook. "I have no concerns about turning things over to her. The team embraces it. At this point, I consider her to be my peer, my guide, my right hand, my mentor, and I'm thankful that every day she is most importantly my friend and my co-worker."
Walsh and her peers all know she has made the best decision. Not only is she using her family situation as life lesson for herself, but she has also transferred the same concept to her team and program.
"My mom has always lived by the concept probably most accurately described by Steven Covey, 'Seek first to understand, then to be understood,'" Walsh added. "She's just the most caring woman I have been around. She is a wonderfully compassionate woman and I take that into coaching and my approach with my student athletes. I'm their advocate and we are all going to make mistakes but we need to be there for one another."