MIDDLEBURY — Longtime Middlebury College lacrosse coach and administrator Missy Foote will retire in June 2015 after a 38-year career at the college. Foote has coached women’s lacrosse at Middlebury for 34 years and spent 21 years at the helm of the field hockey program. She is currently associate director of athletics and has also served as the department’s senior woman administrator for the past 17 years.
“It is with mixed feelings that we acknowledge that Missy Foote’s career will come to an end a year from now,” said Director of Athletics Erin Quinn. “For more than 37 years, she has dedicated herself to Middlebury College, the athletics department, the physical education program, her colleagues, and particularly her scores of student-athletes. It is in the spirit of celebration that we look forward to Missy’s final year of her extraordinary career as a coach and administrator.”
Foote recently finished her 34th year as head coach of the women’s lacrosse program. Her squads have won five NCAA Division III championships since 1997, including four perfect seasons (1999, 2001, 2002, 2004). The Panthers made 14 straight trips to the final four from 1994-2007 and have appeared in eight NCAA title games.
Middlebury has won seven NESCAC championships and appeared in the title game nine times. From 1997-2004, the Panthers earned an overall mark of 131-7 en route to their five national titles. Prior to NCAA play, she guided the Panthers to two ECAC Championships and has an overall record of 406-110-1. Her career wins are second all-time among Division III coaches, while she ranks third among coaches throughout all divisions.
“After 37 years of coaching, this seems like the right time to step into another chapter in my life,” said Foote. “I’m looking forward to spending time with my family as well as traveling and pursuing all of the recreational activities I’ve dabbled in over the years.”
Foote was named the 1994, 1997, 2000, 2001 and 2002 Division III New England and National Women’s Lacrosse Coach of the Year. She earned NESCAC Coach of the Year honors from 2001 to 2005, and was named the Regional Coach of the Year in 2012 and 2013.
Foote was inducted into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 2012. She is also a member of the U.S. Lacrosse Vermont and New England halls of fame as well as the Ward Melville High School Hall of Fame. Foote has also served as assistant coach for the U.S. Women’s Developmental Team and was a member of the NCAA Division III Women’s Lacrosse Committee.
She has also been part of the IWLCA All-American committee and has served on the Tewaaraton Committee. In her time at Middlebury, she has served as the director of physical education, as well as head coach of women’s basketball and swimming.
“Having the opportunity to help young women reach their potential every day is what has always made mine the best job in the world, which is why 37 years has passed in the blink of an eye,” said Foote. “I look forward to this coming year, my last, working with colleagues whom I count among my dearest friends and in a department that has always been defined by the utmost mutual respect. Most importantly, I’m excited to stand on the sideline for one more year with the student-athletes who have made this career such a wonderful one.”
The 2001 season marked Foote’s 21st and final year as head coach of the field hockey program at Middlebury. She ended her career with a record of 180-95-12 for a .648 winning percentage. Her most successful season came in 1998 when she led the team to a 17-1 record and its first NCAA Championship.
She led the team to NCAA Tournament appearances in 1994 and 1996. During her reign, the team made six ECAC Tournament appearances and captured a pair of ECAC crowns in 1993 and 1997. She was named the Division III Regional and National Coach of the Year in 1994 and 1998.
A 1974 Springfield College graduate, Foote coached field hockey, basketball, and lacrosse at Green Mountain Union High School in Chester before joining the Middlebury staff in 1977.
“Her career goes beyond the usual platitudes and can only be described in historic terms,” said Quinn. “She is one of the top coaches in the history of her sport, and will retire from Middlebury as one of the most admired and beloved coaches ever to work at the college.”