Who is Erin Matson? Meet the 23-year-old UNC field hockey coach who led Tar Heels to NCAA championship

By | November 19, 2023
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In a list of the greatest athletes of all time, you’ll see Erin Matson. At least, you should.

The former Tar Heel already secured her place in North Carolina field hockey history as a player, but she’s not done. The 23-year-old is in in her first season as Carolina’s head coach, just a year after she played her last game with the program, which resulted in a national title. Now, she has another one as a rookie coach. 

The Tar Heels defeated Northwestern 2-1 in a double-overtime penalty shootout to take the program’s 11th NCAA championship. Matson has had a direct hand in nearly half of them. 

Besides being the youngest head coach in NCAA Division I athletics and now the youngest coach to win a national championship, what makes Matson so special? Here’s what you need to know about her.

Who is Erin Matson?

Matson is one of the best field hockey players to grace the NCAA, to say the least.

During her five years as a player, she became the most decorated player ever. She became a three-time national player of the year and won four national titles (2018, 2019, 2020 and 2022). Three of those trophies capped off undefeated seasons. She is the career scoring leader in the ACC and NCAA Tournament history with 137 goals and 337 points.

At 16, she became the youngest player to join the US national team. 

Before Karen Shelton, the winningest coach in field hockey, had even announced her retirement, Matson approached athletics director Bubba Cunningham and said she wanted the position. For Cunningham, it was originally “an idea that you probably do have to sit with for a while to say, ‘OK, am I really going to consider this?’”

Shelton officially retired in December, and in late January, Matson was officially announced as the head coach.

“To say I’m excited and honored to be the head coach of the UNC field hockey program is an understatement – this is a dream come true,” Matson said when officially be. “This program means the world to me, and I will do whatever it takes to continue the excellence that is UNC Field Hockey.”

Now, the first-year coach has the Tar Heels on top again. They won their seventh-straight ACC title this season, earning the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. They defeated Virginia in the semifinals to secure a rematch against Northwestern, who they bested in last year’s championship. The Wildcats won the 2021 national title, the only season in which UNC and Matson did not win.

North Carolina has only lost three games this season.

Erin Matson playing career

Matson was named ACC Player of the Year and first-team All-American for all five seasons she played. Her stats for each year are listed below.

Season Games played Goals Points Shot %
2018 23 20 59 .274
2019 20 33 81 .287
2020 20 29 67 .234
2021 17 27 64 .284
2022 21 28 66 .241
Total 101 137 337 .262

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