UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State women's soccer head coach Erica Dambach announced the addition of Declan Doherty to the program's staff on Wednesday afternoon, completing the Nittany Lion coaching roster ahead of the team's 2024 campaign this fall.
"We are thrilled to welcome Declan to our Penn State women's soccer family," Dambach stated. "He brings a significant amount of experience working with players at every level of the game, and I am thrilled to see how his knowledge will positively impact our staff and student-athletes. Declan has an extensive background as an assistant coach and analyst at the collegiate level, and his years of experience working with NWSL side Racing Louisville made him an enticing target for our open assistant coaching role heading into this season. I know that Declan will be an outstanding addition to our program as we continue to lead the way nationally in developing student-athletes for successful careers in soccer, as well as life after sports."
Doherty arrives in Happy Valley with a wealth of experience at the professional, collegiate and academy levels, both in the United States and his native Northern Ireland. In the collegiate ranks, Doherty most recently served as a performance analyst for the Louisville women's soccer program from 2019 to 2023, helping the Cardinals make an NCAA Tournament appearance in his inaugural campaign while leading multiple student-athletes to All-ACC accolades. Doherty played a key role in the development of 2021 ACC Player of the Year and fifth overall NWSL Draft choice Emina Ekic during his time with the Cardinals, marking both the first ACC Player of the Year and NWSL Draft selection in Louisville program history.
During his stint with the Cardinals, Doherty also served as an academy coach and performance analyst with the NWSL's Racing Louisville FC. From 2021 to 2024, Doherty maintained an Assistant Director of Coaching title, helping develop the next generation of women's soccer stars as a key contributor to Racing's academy efforts in Kentucky. He also served as a key contributor to the senior club's strategy and performance analytics in 2024, working alongside head coach Beverly Yanez's staff in their inaugural season at the helm in Louisville.
Doherty began his career at Louisville after spending three seasons with the University of Evansville as an assistant coach and graduate assistant. While working with the Purple Aces, Doherty helped guide the team to a 2016 appearance in the Missouri Valley Conference Championship match, in addition to a 2018 appearance in the MVC Semifinals. Prior to his stint at Evansville, Doherty spent one season at the University of Buffalo, helping the men's program post an 8-7-4 overall record, marking the organization's first winning season since the 2008 campaign.
"I am incredibly excited to be given the opportunity to work at such an elite level program," Doherty said. "Every interaction with the staff and the players has always exuded quality and class. I am looking forward to competing for titles and helping to develop the incredible women in this program for their professional careers beyond Penn State. Being a part of this community is something I am very grateful for. I can't thank the staff enough for the opportunity, and the work they put in to help me get here. I can't wait to get started and help continue to uphold the standard of excellence that everyone at Penn State has helped to create."
Doherty, a native of Belfast, Northern Ireland, was the head coach of the Ulster University Jordanstown women's team in his native country, leading the squad to a 7-3-1 overall record and a National League championship in 2013. After that, he moved on to an assistant role with the Queens University Belfast men's team, helping the squad post a 19-5-6 record in the process. Doherty, who also played for the Rosario Youth Football Club before pursuing a coaching career, graduated from Ulster Jordanstown in 2013 with a degree in sport and exercise science. Doherty also boasts a pair of Master's Degrees, including a Master's in Public Service Administration from the University of Evansville and a Master's in Sport Administration from the University of Louisville.
Doherty joins one of the most decorated coaching staffs in women's college soccer and will play a key role in guiding the Nittany Lions into their 31st varsity campaign following a 16-3-4 finish a year ago that ended in the national quarterfinals of the 2023 NCAA Tournament. The Blue & White have participated in every NCAA Tournament since the program's second year of existence in 1995, rattling off 29 consecutive postseason bids to mark the second-longest active tournament streak in Division I. PSU returns 10 student-athletes who registered at least one start a year ago, highlighted by a pair of All-Big Ten honorees in senior forward Kaitlyn MacBean and senior defender Mieke Schiemann.
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