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York College of Pennsylvania

York College of Pennsylvania Athletic Dept
441 Country Club Road York, PA 17405
Division 3 Pennsylvania Northeast
Private Small Developing team

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Jen Muston

Jen Muston just finished her 16th season as the head women’s lacrosse coach at York College of Pennsylvania as one of the top coaches in the region after leading York to a combined 45 wins in the last three seasons. Muston owns a sterling record of 208-83 in her 16 years as the Spartan mentor, while York has also gone 23-1 in their three years in the MAC Commonwealth with two championships.


The 2023 campaign was the best in school history as the Green and White won a school record 18 games as they earned a second MAC Commonwealth title and a tenth NCAA Tournament berth. The Spartans advanced to the Elite Eight before falling to national finalist Gettysburg. The Spartans placed eight players on the MAC All-Commonwealth teams as Muston was named the league's Coach of the Year for the sixth time in her Spartan career. Freshman Sydney Mentzer was named the MAC Commonwealth Rookie of the Year while Bella Garabo was selected as the Goalie of the Year. York had five players earn All-Region accolades while Garabo, Kiersten Blanchard and Emmy Bryden earned IWLCA All-American honors. Garabo was named the Division III Goalie of the Year.


In 2022, the Spartans went 15-6 and a perfect 8-0 in league play as they captured their first MAC Commonwealth title with a 12-7 win over Stevenson in the tournament championship game. York advanced to the second round of their ninth NCAA Tournament appearance. The Spartans placed eight players on the all-league team as Kiersten Blanchard was named the Commonwealth Attacker of the Year. Blanchard led four Spartans on the All-Region squad while she was joined on the IWLCA All-American team by Chloe MacDonald and Emmy Bryden.


2021 saw the Spartans return from COVID and go 12-3 with a MAC Commonwealth only schedule. The Green and White advanced to the Commonwealth Championship game where they fell to Messiah. York missed the tournament for the first time since 2011.


The 2020 campaign was cut short by the pandemic as York was 4-1 in the early going with one of Muston's best all-time teams. The Spartans returned almost their entire squad from the 2019 CAC Championship team.


The 2019 season proved to be one of the best in school history as York went a school-record 17-6 with their first-ever conference championship as York beat Salisbury 13-11, on the road in the title tilt. York won a pair of NCAA Tournament games before Tufts ended York's season in the national quarterfinals. York placed seven players on the All-CAC teams highlighted by five first team members. Nicole Clauter earned the CAC Player of the Year award for the second time in her Spartan career. She was joined on the All-Region squad by Regan Cook, Meghan Fox, Devin Hursey and Claudia DeVenti. Clauter earned the IWLCA Defender of the Year and earned her third first-team IWLCA All-American award. Cook, Fox, and Hursey joined Clauter on the All-American squad. The four All-Americans is a school-record.


In 2018, the Spartans had another successful campaign going 15-5 overall and 7-1 in conference play. The Spartans were able to make it to the CAC semi-final match where they fell in a heart breaking fashion to Mary Washington, however York still earned an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. The Spartans took advantage of this opportunity by making it to the Elite Eight for the second consecutive season. They opened up the tournament with a 10-3 victory of Washington & Lee in the second round. They followed that up with an impressive performance in a 13-6 win over Catholic. York fell to the eventual national runner-up Middlebury 11-10 in the Elite Eight to end their run. The Green and White produced three All-Americans and six All-CAC performers.


In 2017, the Spartans topped the previous school record with 16 wins, going 16-4, along with a perfect conference slate, finishing 8-0. In the regular season, York took down Salisbury for the first time in school history 10-6, after losing the previous 17 tries, in a matchup of two top-11 teams in the nation. The Sea Gulls took the rematch in the CAC Championship, but York earned an NCAA Tournament berth for the sixth straight year, where they won multiple games to reach the Elite Eight. In a pair of close gams, the Green and White defeated St. John Fisher 5-4 in the second round, before out-lasting Messiah in the Sweet 16 8-7 in an overtime battle. The incredible run came to an end at Trinity (Conn.) in the Elite Eight.


York, for the fifth consecutive season, reached the NCAA Tournament in 2016, going 12-7 overall and 5-3 in CAC play. Right in the thick of conference play, the Spartans ripped off six straight wins, including a first-round victory over Christopher Newport in the CAC Tournament. The Spartans eventually fell in the conference semifinals to Salisbury, in a heart-breaking 8-7 final, and then to Amherst on the road in the NCAA Tournament second round. Megan Strauch was named an IWLCA All-American for the second season, while four were named to the All-CAC team and three to the All-Region squad.


The 2015 edition of the Spartan squad was the best year in school history, before 2017, as York advanced to the Elite Eight before falling 10-8 to Middlebury. The Spartans went 15-6 overall and 7-1 in the CAC as they advanced to the CAC championship game for the fourth straight year. The Spartans also earned their four straight NCAA Tournament berth. The year was one of firsts as defender Karlie Dougherty earned the Spartans' first ever women's lacrosse CAC Player of the Year Award. She also earned York's first first-team All-American while she also earned the IWLCA Defender of the Year. Dougherty and Strauch earned All-American accolades for the Spartans while five players earned All-CAC accolades.


The 2014 squad posted 15 wins and a third straight trip to the CAC championship game and NCAA Tournament. The Green and White picked up an NCAA Tournament win over St. John Fisher as York advanced to the Sweet 16 for the second straight year. York had five players earn All-CAC honors while four Spartans earned IWLCA all-region accolades. Erica Mulford and Ashley Smith were selected as IWLCA All-Americans.


Muston led the 2013 Spartan squad to a fantastic year as the Spartans tied the school record with 14 wins, earned a second at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament, and earned the program’s first NCAA Tournament win. The Spartans advanced to the Capital Athletic Conference tournament championship for the second straight year and defeated Washington & Lee 13-6 on May 8 for the program’s initial NCAA win. Muston guided a pair of All-Americans as Kim Wayson and Katie Vautier earned the IWLCA national honor.


Muston led the 2012 Spartan squad to one of the best campaigns in school history. The Green and White won a school-record 14 matches and earned the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance. For her efforts, Muston was named the Capital Athletic Conference Coach-of-the-Year for the second consecutive year while she was also selected as the IWLCA Metro Region Coach-of-the-Year. The Spartans made their first appearance in the Capital Athletic Conference championship game after going 7-1 in the conference during the regular season.


In 2011, the sixth season of York's varsity women's lacrosse program, the Green and White posted an impressive 13-4 mark and reached the Capital Athletic Conference Tournament semifinals. For that effort, she was named the CAC Coach-of-the-Year by her conference peers.


Since Muston's arrival prior to the 2008 season, York has posted a 208-83 mark including ten-plus wins in 15 of her 16 Spartan seasons. For her career, Muston has coached 80 of York's 83 All-Conference players. She is also responsible for recruiting and coaching 54 of York's 57 All-Region selections in addition to leading Kim Wayson to the program's first-ever IWLCA All-American award. Wayson was a the first of York's 16 players to have earned 24 IWLCA All-American honors.


Guided by Muston, the Spartan program has continued to become a force on the regional and national level. A tireless recruiter and dedicated teacher of the game, Muston is steadily building a program that has made an impact in both the region and on the national scene. York finished the 2022 season ranked sixth in the nation. The Spartans have been consistently inside the top 15 for the last ten seasons.


Prior to York, Muston served as an assistant women’s lacrosse coach at Goucher College for two seasons. She earned her master’s degree in education from Goucher as she was a Gopher from 2006 to 2007. Muston was responsible for assisting the head coach in all of the day-to-day aspects of running the Division III program. She assisted in planning practice, game strategies, student-athlete recruitment, scouting opponents, and game-tape breakdown.


Muston began her coaching career at the University of Maryland Baltimore County as she was an assistant coach in the spring of 2005. That coaching stint followed a stellar four-year career for the Retrievers. Muston was a four-year starter at UMBC and was a captain during her senior year. At the time of her graduation, Muston held the UMBC career assists record with 63 helpers while her 123 goals ranked her seventh on the Retrievers’ all-time list. She ended her career fifth on UMBC’s career points list with 186. A three-time first-team All-Northeast Conference selection, Muston was also the 2002 NEC tournament MVP and the 2003 conference Player-of-the-Year. She was named UMBC’s outstanding female athlete for the 2003-04 academic year. For those efforts, Muston was inducted into the UMBC Athletic Hall of Fame in the winter of 2012.

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Ashley Fitzhugh

Ashley Fitzhugh concluded her 16th season on Jen Muston's staff with the 2022-23 season.. Fitzhugh focuses mainly on the defensive aspect of the game. She took over the top assistant’s role in 2008 as she helps continue the program’s steady improvement.


Fitzhugh was a four-year starter for the University of Maryland Baltimore County, where she played under her maiden name of Staines, graduating from UMBC with a degree in psychology. From 1998-2002, she helped the Retrievers to a 44-25 record, three Northeast Conference Championships, and the program’s first-ever NCAA Division I Top-20 ranking.


She was twice named the NEC Player-of-the-Week during her career and was selected as the 2000 NEC tournament MVP. Fitzhugh currently holds the league’s tournament record for goals scored in a game and in the tournament. She led the Retrievers with 43 goals scored in 2000 and was a two-time All-NEC first-team choice in 2000 and 2001.


She resides in Timonium, Maryland with her children Stella, Logan and Kellan.

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Kayleigh Phillips

Kayleigh Phillips joined the Spartan coaching staff for the 2023 season and is responsible for working with the draw team.


Phillips was a three-year member of the Spartan women's lacrosse program form 2016-18 after starting her career at Division I Bryant. As a Spartan, Phillips played in 56 games with 51 starts, amassing 63 points on 55 goals and eight assists, while also collecting 165 draw controls. She ranked top-five in program history in draw controls at the completion of her career and played a big role in helping the Spartans set a then single-season team record with 292 draw controls in 2018.

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Nicole Clauter

Nicky Clauter completed her second full year on the Spartan staff at the conclusion of the 2023 campaign. She is responsible for coaching the draw unit and works alongside renowned assistant coach Ashley Fitzhugh with the defense.


Clauter returns to her alma mater after a two-year graduate assistantship with the Millersville women’s lacrosse program. While at Millersville, she coached the defense and served as the program’s recruiting coordinator. Clauter earned her Masters of Education in sport management with a concentration in athletic coaching from Millersvielle in May of 2021. She earned her Bachelors of Science in sport management from York in the spring of 2019.


During her four-year playing career with the Spartans, Clauter was instrumental in taking the program to new heights, most notably capturing the program’s first-ever conference title in 2019 when No. 8 York defeated No. 6 Salisbury, 13-11, in the Capital Athletic Conference title game. The Spartans also made four-straight NCAA postseason appearances during Clauter’s playing tenure with trips to the national quarterfinals in her last three seasons. York compiled a record of 60-22 (.732 win pct.) during Clauter’s four years and set the program’s single-season wins record with 17 in 2019.


Clauter reigns as the most decorated player in York women’s lacrosse history and one of the most accomplished student-athletes in York College history. She holds the distinction of being the only three-time IWLCA All-American (earning first team honors all three years), the only two-time conference major award winner and the only four-time all-conference honoree in York women’s lacrosse history.


As a senior, Clauter was named the Capital Athletic Conference Player of the Year for the second time in her career and went on to be named the IWLCA National Defender of the Year that same season. Clauter was also named the Capital Athletic Conference Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, which recognized the top female senior student-athlete in the entire conference, and also earned the Georgia Heathcote Stallman Award as York College’s most outstanding senior female student-athlete. Clauter was also York’s NCAA Woman of the Year nominee in 2019.


Clauter’s name is all over the Spartan record book. At the end of her career, she ranked first in career draw controls (332), draw controls per game (4.04), fourth in caused turnovers (90) and fifth in ground balls (138), while also ranking first in games played (83) and games started (83). She set the program’s single season-season draw control record with 116 in 2019 and established the single-game record with 14 draws on April 18, 2018 in a win at St. Mary's. She also had career-highs of five ground balls on five different occasions and three caused turnovers in 12 games.


"Nicky was a total game-changer when she was a player and she has the ability to do that as a coach for us," said Muston. "Her knowledge of the game and the ability to instruct is going to be a huge advantage for our players. I am very excited to have her back as a Spartan."

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