Nicole McClure - Women's Soccer Coach - Princeton University Athletics

Nicole McClure

Title:
Assistant Coach
Email:
nicole.mcclure@princeton.edu

Nicole McClure, an eight-year pro who helped Jamaica to the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup,joined the Princeton women's soccer staff as an assistant coach in April 2021.

"It's a privilege to start my college coaching career at Princeton," McClure said upon her hiring. "The women's program has a strong legacy of outstanding student-athletes and I look forward to providing mentorship and guidance to these young women. I'm excited to learn from (head coach) Sean (Driscoll) and (assistant coach) Mike (Poller) as we prepare the leaders of tomorrow and continue the success of the program."

McClure's first season with the program in 2021 saw the team earn an NCAA at-large berth, win a first-round game, and turn in 11 shutouts in 19 tries on the year. Under McClure's tutelage, lead keeper Grace Barbara earned first-team All-Ivy League honors while authoring seven solo shutouts with a GAA of 0.90. Between three keepers that season, the team had a GAA of 0.77.

McClure began her collegiate career at Hawai'i, helping the team to Western Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament championships as a freshman in 2007. McClure transferred to South Florida for her final two seasons, during in goals-against averages of 0.89 and 1.24 in 2010 and 2011 as the team's starting keeper. The 2010 season saw McClure and the Bulls win the Big East tournament and advance to the second round of the NCAAs.

As a pro, McClure played from 2012 through 2019 with teams in Iceland, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Croatia, Israel, France and the U.K. Her national team experience with Jamaica began with the U-20 team in 2008, and her first Senior National Team call-up was in 2014. McClure helped Jamaica make its first FIFA Women's World Cup as the team finished third at the 2018 CONCACAF Women's Championship, behind only the U.S. and Canada. The WWC bid clincher came in the third-place match against Panama, where McClure helped Jamaica win the penalty-kick shootout 4-2 with a pair of saves. McClure then started Jamaica's final game in the 2019 WWC against Australia.

"Nicole made an immediate impact during the interview process," Driscoll said upon McClure's hiring. "Her desire to be a part of our program was evident from her preparation, palpable energy and the questions she asked of our staff and our goalkeepers. Her life experiences and acquired knowledge from playing professionally in France, Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Croatia and Iceland, as well as the Jamaican National Team, will be invaluable for our goalkeepers and field players. Nicole is the embodiment of pursuing a true passion, which is a message I think that will resonate with all members of our team. I believe her charismatic and infectious personality will bring a wonderful dimension to our program and she will be a tremendous teacher and mentor for our student-athletes."