Ashley Walsh enters her second season on head coach Jen Hughes’ staff. A two-time captain at Division I Colgate University, she was a four-year starting goalkeeper for the Raiders, earning her bachelor’s degree in cellular neuroscience with a minor in women’s studies in May of 2013.
Bursting onto the scene in 2009, Walsh was named the Patriot League’s Rookie of the Year after tying for third on the program’s single season charts for shutouts (9) and fourth in goals-against average (0.94).
Garnering praise on the conference’s All-Tournament team as a junior, she was named the league championship’s Most Valuable Player in 2012 after posting consecutive shutouts to help Colgate capture a conference crown. Finishing fourth all-time in the Raiders’ record books for career saves (391), she also ranks fourth in career shutouts (15).
Continuing her career after graduation, Walsh spent a season as a goalkeeper for the National Women’s Soccer League’s (NWSL) Western New York Flash. Also later serving as a WNY Flash team assistant, she worked with the squad’s marketing, development and sales efforts. Spending two years as a coach with the Odyssey Sport Soccer Club, she previously served as a coach at the SoccerPlus Goalkeeper Camp in the summer of 2012 and holds a United States Soccer Federation E Coaching License.
Twice named to the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll, Walsh was Colgate’s 2013 NCAA Woman of the Year nominee. A member of the University’s Leadership Academy, she was the Larry Bossidy ’57 Leadership Award Winner in 2012 and also garnered recognition as a Gottesman Award Winner for Excellence in the Science and Athletics.