Intercollegiate Athletics

Penn State field hockey Head Coach Char Morett-Curtiss announces retirement

Char Morett-Curtiss has served as the head coach of the Nittany Lion field hockey team since 1987, recording 541 career victories at Penn State.  Credit: Penn State AthleticsAll Rights Reserved.

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — A legendary career in Penn State athletics that began in 1975 writes its final lines as Penn State field hockey Head Coach Char Morett-Curtiss announces her retirement. Morett-Curtiss leaves her position as the face of Nittany Lion field hockey after wrapping up her 39th year as a collegiate head coach this past fall. A 1979 graduate of Penn State and an All-American as a player, she recently led Penn State to an appearance in the 2022 NCAA semifinals.
 
While her coaching career draws to a close, Morett-Curtiss will remain with Penn State Athletics in an advisory capacity.
 
"My heart is filled with gratitude for Penn State," said Morett-Curtiss. "I came here as a student-athlete in July 1975 and have had countless opportunities to grow and make an impact because of the University and people like Ellen Perry, who hired me, and athletic directors like Tim Curley, Sandy Barbour and Pat Kraft, who have supported Penn State field hockey and me every step of the way.
 
"It's the right time," continued Morett-Curtiss. "The program is in great shape, coming off the Final Four and a Big Ten championship, with an experienced staff of Penn Staters, a new stadium on the horizon, and an athletic director in Pat Kraft who shares my vision for the program's future."
 
"Char is a Penn State legend! She has been the keystone of the Penn State field hockey program from the time she was a student-athlete through an amazing nearly 40-year career as a coach," said Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Patrick Kraft. "Her passion for Penn State, Happy Valley, women's athletics and field hockey, in particular, has shown through in everything she does. She has been a mentor for so many young women, not only making them better field hockey players but preparing them for life after field hockey. She bleeds Blue & White, and while we will miss her on the sidelines, we are excited to have her continue to share her love for Penn State Athletics in her new advisory role."
 
Morett-Curtiss' coaching career began in 1980 as an assistant coach at Old Dominion. Four years later, in 1984, she took the helm of the Boston College Golden Eagles. She led Boston College to a 34-16-8 record during her three seasons there and then returned to Happy Valley in 1987 to become Penn State's fifth head coach, taking over for Gillian Rattray, who she played for as a Lion.
 
Penn State concluded this year's campaign with a superb 17-4 record, advancing to the national semifinals for the sixth time under Morett-Curtiss' leadership. The team won a share of the 2022 Big Ten regular season championship, had four NFHCA All-Americans, seven NFHCA All-Region picks, and five All-Big Ten honorees among a lengthy list of accolades. Morett-Curtiss, associate head coach Lisa Bervinchak-Love, and assistant coach Laura Gebhart were named the NFHCA Mideast Regional Coaching Staff of the Year.
 
Morett-Curtiss retires as one of NCAA field hockey's legendary figures. Her accomplishments as a coach are extensive:

  • 575-239-16 career record as a head coach.
  • 575 career wins (541 at Penn State and 34 at Boston College) are in the NCAA's top five all-time.
  • 30 NCAA appearances, including six trips to the national semifinals and two to the national championship game, rank among the top five all-time.
  • Eight Big Ten regular-season titles and two Atlantic 10 regular-season crowns.
  • Six Big Ten Tournament Championships and two Atlantic 10 Tournament Championships.
  • Eight-time NFHCA Mideast Region Coach of the Year.
  • Seven-time Big Ten Coach of the Year.

Student-athletes under her guidance have achieved amazing success during her tenure as head coach. Morett-Curtiss has led Penn State players to a lengthy list of accolades:

  • 43 NFHCA first-team All-Americans, 31 second-team All-Americans, 25 third-team All-Americans.
  • 79 first-team All-Big Ten selections.
  • Six Big Ten Players of the Year, nine Big Ten Offensive Players of the Year, 10 Big Ten Defensive Players of the Year.
  • 343 Academic All-Big Ten selections.
  • Nearly 300 NFHCA National All-Academic honorees.

"I hope I will be remembered as a coach who cared, who inspired my players and all Penn Staters, and who had a great deal of fun along the way, from singing on the bus, dancing in the locker room, and cheering in Beaver Stadium," said Morett-Curtiss. "It all began with Gillian Rattray, who believed in me as a high school recruit, then as a college athlete in two sports and then as a coach. Fellow coaches like Joe Paterno and Russ Rose lifted and helped guide me. I have been blessed to work alongside very talented and caring assistant coaches, three of whom with deep roots in Penn State field hockey — Lisa Bervinchak Love, Laura Gebhart, Annie Zinkavich, as well as Stuart Smith. More recently, it has been an honor for me to work alongside the many talented and passionate head coaches who I see every day here at Penn State. They are more than coaching peers to me, they are confidants, inspirations and true friends.
 
"I love Penn State and will always be grateful to so many people that have touched my life in Happy Valley."
 
As a player for Penn State, Morett-Curtiss helped lead Penn State to four EAIAW regional appearances and 36 wins. She was a senior on the 1978 team that posted a 13-1-3 mark, a school record for wins at the time. Morett-Curtiss' accomplishments as a Penn State player are also outstanding:

  • 50 career goals.
  • Tied for the Penn State record for goals in a game with five (vs. Bucknell on Oct. 4, 1977).
  • Two-time first-team NFHCA All-American (1977 and 1978).

After graduation in the spring of 1979, Morett-Curtiss embarked upon a stellar national and international career as a player. She was a member of the U.S. National Team for seven-straight seasons (1978-84) and is one of three former Nittany Lions who earned spots on the U.S. Olympic Team. Morett-Curtiss earned a spot on the 1980 squad that qualified for the Moscow games but did not compete due to the boycott that year. Four years later, she was a member of the bronze medal-winning U.S. National Team in the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics.
 
Morett-Curtiss has coached numerous U.S. National Teams, competing in tournaments around the globe. She has served in various positions for the USFHCA as well, including vice president of coaching and on the board of directors.
 
A native of Aldan, Pennsylvania, Morett-Curtiss is a graduate of Lansdowne-Aldan High School. Morett-Curtiss has been inducted into the USFHA Hall of Fame, the NFHCA Hall of Fame, the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame, the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame, and the Delaware County Hall of Fame.

Last Updated February 15, 2023