One of the winningest and most respected coaches in women’s ice hockey history, Jeff Kampersal has elevated Penn State women’s hockey to unprecedented heights and enters his 10th season leading the Nittany Lions in 2026-27.
Kampersal is a five-time Atlantic Hockey America Coach of the Year and a four-time finalist for the AHCA National Coach of the Year award. After leading Penn State to a Frozen Four appearance and one of the most successful seasons in program history in 2025-26, he was named both the AHCA and USCHO National Coach of the Year.
Under Kampersal's leadership, Penn State has emerged as a national power. He guided the program to its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2022-23 and has since led the Nittany Lions to four consecutive NCAA Tournament berths. Over the last four seasons, Penn State has amassed 100 victories, the most in any four-year stretch in program history.
The 2025-26 season marked another milestone in the program’s rise. Penn State captured its fourth consecutive AHA Tournament championship and fifth consecutive regular-season title while earning the #3 overall seed in the NCAA Women’s Hockey Tournament. The Nittany Lions hosted an NCAA Tournament game for the first time in school history, secured their first NCAA Tournament victory and advanced to the Frozen Four for the first time.
The Frozen Four run proved historic on multiple levels. Penn State not only reached the national semifinals but also hosted the 2025-26 NCAA Women’s Frozen Four at Pegula Ice Arena, setting both a program attendance record and a Women’s Frozen Four attendance record with 5,176 fans in attendance.
On January 23, 2026, Kampersal earned his 500th career victory in a 5-0 shutout of Delaware, becoming just the fifth head coach in NCAA Division I women’s hockey history to reach the milestone. He currently owns 183 victories as Penn State’s head coach.
Kampersal’s squad also rewrote the Penn State record book in 2025-26. The Nittany Lions established new single-season program records in goals, assists, points, shots, power-play goals, shutouts and goals-against average while recording the most victories in a single season in school history.
The 2025-26 season also featured one of the most decorated individual campaigns in program history. Under Kampersal’s guidance, Tessa Janecke became Penn State’s first Olympic gold medalist, helping Team USA defeat Canada in overtime of the gold-medal game at the Winter Olympics in Milan. Janecke was named a CCM/AHCA First Team All-American, First Team All-USCHO selection, AHA Player of the Year, AHA Forward of the Year and a top-three finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award. She also established new Penn State records in 11 career categories and four single-season categories. In addition, Maltide Fantin (Italy) and Nicole Hall (Sweden) represented their countries at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano-Cortina.
Another landmark moment came on January 30, 2026, when Penn State played its first outdoor game at West Shore Home Field at Beaver Stadium. The Nittany Lions defeated Robert Morris, 3-0, before a crowd of 1,828 fans.
The foundation for Penn State’s historic 2025-26 season was established during a record-setting 2024-25 campaign. Kampersal, again named AHA Coach of the Year, guided the Nittany Lions to a program-record 31 victories and an AHA-record 19 conference wins. Penn State secured both the AHA regular-season and tournament championships for the third consecutive season.
Three Nittany Lions earned major AHA postseason awards. Tessa Janecke was named both Player and Forward of the Year while leading the conference in scoring. Kendall Butze earned Defenseman of the Year honors, and Katie DeSa was recognized as Goaltender of the Year. The trio joined Katelyn Roberts on the All-AHA First Team, while Maddy Christian and Lyndie Lobdell earned Second Team honors. Grace Outwater and Grace Tullock were selected to the AHA All-Rookie Team.
Janecke continued her ascent as one of the nation’s elite players during the 2024-25 season. In a 4-0 victory over Lindenwood on January 25, she became Penn State hockey’s all-time leader in career points, surpassing all men’s and women’s players in program history. She finished the season with 153 career points on 63 goals and 90 assists, earned a second consecutive top-10 placement for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award and received Second Team CCM/AHCA All-America and All-USCHO honors.
Her international success was equally impressive. Representing Team USA at the 2025 IIHF Women’s World Championship, Janecke scored the championship-winning goal in overtime in a 4-3 against Canada to secure the gold medal. It marked her second world championship gold medal and third career IIHF World Championship medal.
Janecke was not the only Nittany Lion to make history during the 2024-25 season. Under Kampersal’s guidance, Lyndie Lobdell became Penn State’s all-time leader in games played with 168 and set the program record for career points by a defenseman with 84. Katie DeSa also enjoyed a historic season, finishing with nine shutouts to tie the program’s single-season record while ranking second nationally in the category. She was later named a semifinalist for the HCA Goalie of the Year Award.
The 2023-24 season continued Penn State’s rise under Kampersal, who earned CHA Coach of the Year honors for the third time in his career. The Nittany Lions won 22 games and accumulated 24 CHA weekly award winners, nine CHA monthly award winners and three All-CHA selections.
Janecke emerged as one of the nation’s premier players during the 2023-24 campaign. She became a top-10 finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award for the first time in her career and reached the 100-point milestone faster than any player in program history. She achieved the feat on February 24 against RIT in the CHA Tournament semifinals. Janecke also earned CHA Player of the Year and CHA Forward of the Year honors while leading the conference in scoring and collecting USCHO Second Team All-America recognition for the first time in her career.
Kampersal guided Penn State to one of the finest seasons in program history in 2022-23, earning CHA Coach of the Year honors for the second time in his career. The Nittany Lions set a then-program record with 27 victories, posted an 18-game unbeaten streak and earned a national ranking among the top 10 teams in the country. The team also produced 26 CHA weekly award winners, 12 CHA monthly award winners and five All-CHA selections. Kampersal’s efforts earned him National Coach of the Year finalist recognition for the second time in his career.
Kiara Zanon highlighted Penn State’s success in 2022-23, becoming a top-10 Patty Kazmaier Award finalist for the second time in her career. She broke Natalie Heising’s program record for single-season goals and led the nation with five shorthanded goals. On January 13 against RIT, Zanon reached and surpassed the 100-career-point milestone by scoring back-to-back shorthanded goals during the same penalty kill. The Fairport, N.Y., native also broke her own single-season program record for points, earned three CHA Forward of the Week honors and two CHA Forward of the Month awards, and was named the 2023 CHA Player of the Year and CHA Scoring Champion.
Freshman Tessa Janecke also played a pivotal role in Penn State’s championship season. Appearing in all 38 games, the Orangeville, Ill., native recorded 22 goals and 25 assists for 47 points. She scored her first collegiate hat trick against Lindenwood in the CHA semifinals on February 25, marking just the second postseason hat trick in program history. Janecke established new Penn State freshman records for points, assists and goals while earning USCHO.com National Rookie of the Year honors and became just the third Nittany Lion in program history to earn a spot on the All-USCHO Rookie Team.
Her standout freshman campaign also included CHA Rookie of the Year honors, HCA National Rookie of the Year recognition and a Patty Kazmaier Award nomination. She collected one CHA Forward of the Month award, one HCA National Rookie of the Month honor, three CHA Rookie of the Month awards and six CHA Rookie of the Week recognitions. Internationally, Janecke helped Team USA capture gold at the 2023 IIHF Women’s World Championship, recording three goals and three assists during the tournament.
Penn State’s 2020-21 team achieved several milestones under Kampersal’s leadership, earning the program’s first No. 1 seed in the College Hockey America Tournament and its first top-10 national ranking in both the USCHO.com and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine polls. The Nittany Lions also set numerous offensive and defensive team records, while seven players earned All-CHA honors, the most in program history.
Two freshmen emerged among the nation’s elite during the 2020-21 campaign. Kiara Zanon became the first Patty Kazmaier Award finalist in program history and was named WHCA National Rookie of the Year. Josie Bothun became Penn State’s first national Goalie of the Year finalist while also earning USCHO.com National Rookie of the Year honors. Their success, combined with the contributions of several key teammates, helped establish the unselfish team culture that fueled the Nittany Lions’ championship season.
Defensive excellence has been a hallmark of Kampersal’s teams since his arrival in Hockey Valley. During the 2019-20 season, Penn State recorded seven shutouts, a single-season program record. The program’s growing competitiveness produced signature victories, including a 4-2 win over #5 Colgate during the 2018-19 season, the highest-ranked victory in school history. Kampersal made an immediate impact in his first season in 2017-18 as Penn State allowed a CHA-best 1.92 goals per game, improving by more than a goal per contest from the previous year.
Kampersal’s teams have produced four conference Players of the Year, four Rookies of the Year, three Defensemen of the Year and three Goaltenders of the Year while consistently competing at the highest levels of collegiate and international hockey.
Nine Nittany Lions received All-Conference recognition, while four players captured major AHA awards, including Player of the Year, Forward of the Year, Defenseman of the Year and Goaltender of the Year. Danica Maynard earned Third Team All-USCHO honors and was named to the conference All-Rookie Team.
Beyond the ice, Kampersal has built a culture of excellence in the classroom and community. Since his arrival, Penn State women’s hockey has earned back-to-back perfect Academic Progress Rate (APR) scores, reflecting success in student-athlete eligibility, retention and graduation. During his tenure, the program has also produced 66 All-AHA Academic Team selections and 71 Academic All-Big Ten honorees.
The culture established by Kampersal has extended well beyond athletics. Team captain Kelsey Crow received Penn State’s prestigious Eric A. Walker Award in 2018-19, an honor presented annually to a graduating senior who best represents the university through extracurricular involvement and community service.
Kampersal was named Penn State’s head coach on June 1, 2017, after a highly successful 21-year tenure at Princeton. During his time with the Tigers, he earned ECAC Hockey Coach of the Year honors three times and Ivy League Coach of the Year recognition twice.
He guided Princeton to Ivy League championships in 2005-06 and 2015-16 and led the Tigers to NCAA Tournament appearances in both seasons. His student-athletes earned 68 All-ECAC Hockey honors, 54 All-Ivy League selections, five Patty Kazmaier Award nominations and two AHCA All-America honors. During his final two seasons, Princeton posted a combined 42-19-5 record, highlighted by the 2015-16 Ivy League title and an NCAA Tournament at-large bid.
The 2016-17 season saw Princeton compile a 20-10-3 record and advance to the ECAC Tournament semifinals before falling to eventual national champion Clarkson. The Tigers recorded seven victories over nationally ranked opponents and produced a Patty Kazmaier top-10 finalist, the USCHO.com National Rookie of the Year, six All-Ivy League selections and four All-ECAC honorees, including the conference’s Goalie and Rookie of the Year. Princeton finished the season ranked No. 9 in the final USCHO.com poll.
In 2015-16, Kampersal directed Princeton to what was then the winningest season in program history. The Tigers posted a 22-9-2 record, captured the Ivy League championship, earned an NCAA Tournament berth and helped Kampersal secure both Ivy League and ECAC Hockey Coach of the Year honors.
Kampersal’s international coaching experience includes guiding the United States Women’s Under-18 National Team to silver medals at the 2013 and 2014 IIHF Women’s U18 World Championships. He also served on the coaching staff for the USA Women’s Select Festival from 2004-06.
A 1992 Princeton graduate with a degree in psychology, Kampersal captained the Tigers men’s hockey team during his senior season. An All-Ivy League and All-ECAC selection, he was awarded Princeton’s 1941 Championship Trophy, presented to the player who best embodies the spirit of the university’s 1941 championship team.
A native of Beverly, Mass., Kampersal played high school hockey at St. John’s Prep in Danvers, Mass., and was inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame in 2009.
Selected by the New York Islanders in the 10th round of the 1988 NHL Entry Draft, Kampersal went on to play professionally for the ECHL’s Richmond Renegades and the AHL’s Capital District Islanders.
Kampersal and his wife, Eileen, have a daughter, Keira, and a son, Jack.