Carolyn King-Robitaille

Head Field Hockey Coach at Saint Anselm College

Carolyn King-Robitaille enters her 10th season at the helm of the nationally-ranked Saint Anselm College field hockey program in 2021. She was appointed to the position on Aug. 8, 2012.

Since coming to the Hilltop, King-Robitaille's charges have racked up 104 victories while qualifying for the NCAA Division II Field Hockey Tournament in four-straight seasons (2016-19). The Hawks also made an appearance in a national championship game under her watch, becoming just the second sports team at Saint Anselm to accomplish that feat.

King-Robitaille has seen her team become a nationally-recognized power, earning its first-ever National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) ranking in the National Coaches' Poll in late 2014 - the Hawks have been in the top-10 for at least three weeks in each of the prior five seasons.

Since assuming the coaching reins in 2012, King-Robitaille has coached all of the program's 12 NFHCA All-America picks and has tutored 32 NE10 All-Conference selections. The NE10's Coach of the Year in 2016, 2017 and 2019, King-Robitaille's student-athletes have earned 35 separate NFHCA Division II All-Academic Team placements. She has also overseen the development of three NE10 Defensive Players of the Year (2016, 2017, 2019) and the league's Goalkeeper of the Year in 2016. Her team also has a 100% graduation rate for four-year student-athletes during her tenure.

The Hawks posted an NCAA Division II record with 20 team shutouts in 2019, making it all the way to the National Championship game against No. 1 West Chester in November. Winning 20 out of 23 games, all via shutout, the Hawks won 18 out of a possible 19 games versus conference opponents and outscored league foes by a commanding 63-to-1 margin. As a team, Saint Anselm finished atop NCAA Division II in cumulative save percentage (0.870), goals-against average (0.26) and shutouts per game (0.87).

Saint Anselm won nine-straight games near the midpoint of the 2018 season, finishing with 15 victories that included 10 against NE10 foes. The Hawks ranked within the top-10 nationally in several statistical categories, including scoring average (2.75), goals per game (2.82) and assists per game (1.77). Saint Anselm hauled in several awards during and after the season - five student-athletes earned All-Conference honors from the NE10, three earned a spot on the NFHCA Division II Senior Game roster and three student-athletes secured weekly honors from both the conference and the NFHCA.

The Hawks completed an outstanding 2017 campaign, racking up 17 wins in 20 games and hosting a First Round game in the NCAA Division II Tournament for the second-straight season. The team claimed the NE10 Regular Season Championship for the second-straight season and set numerous program records, including collective point scoring (80-52=212), points per game (10.60), goals (80), goals per game (4.00), assists (52) and goals-against average (1.00). The graduating class of seniors, all recruited by King-Robitaille, racked up an outstanding 57-21 overall record since 2014. The team also equaled its previous team record by ranking third in NCAA Division II, according to the NFHCA, during three separate weeks.

In 2016, the Hawks posted a 17-5 overall record while going 10-2 in the NE10 to earn the Regular Season Championship. They parlayed that into the program's first NE10 Championship appearance, NCAA Tournament appearance and first showing in the National Semifinals. King-Robitaille was named both the Northeast-10 and NFHCA East Region Coach of the Year and she coached three NFHCA All-Americans in Elizabeth Alie, Katherine Sears and Erin Collins, while freshman Hannah Friend was named to the Synapse Sports All-Freshman Team. Alie was named the NE10 Defensive Player of the Year, while Sears earned Goalkeeper of the Year honors in the league.

King-Robitaille, a native of Hanover, Mass., arrived on the Hilltop after serving the previous two seasons as a graduate assistant coach at SUNY Cortland. In her final season in 2011, the Red Dragons finished 12-7 after extending their NCAA Tournament appearance streak to 13 straight seasons and capturing a SUNYAC Championship. In 2010, Cortland dropped a 1-0 decision in the SUNYAC final and then fell by one in the NCAA Regionals to conclude the season at 16-5.

Prior to joining Cortland, King-Robitaille was an assistant coach with Bates College for three seasons, including 2008 when the Bobcats earned a tournament berth in the competitive NESCAC conference. King-Robitaille also served as an assistant softball coach at Bates in 2009 and 2010.

In addition, King-Robitaille is a United States Field Hockey Level I Coach Educator and is the site director for the USA Field Hockey Futures Development Program held at Saint Anselm.

King-Robitaille was the recipient of the prestigious National Coach Award, presented by USA Field Hockey, on Mar. 17, 2018. The individual honored is dedicated to their craft and works tirelessly to make their players, fellow coaches and the field hockey community better. In addition to her outstanding success at Saint Anselm, she has helped to grow the game in the Granite State, hosting camps and clinics for players of all skill levels while partnering with fellow NCAA Division II coaches in the region to provide top-notch instruction for local youths.

King-Robitaille was a four-year varsity field hockey forward at Bates from 2003-06 and also played catcher for the softball team from 2004-05. Internationally, King-Robitaille suited up in South Africa as an independent player in 2006, played in Holland that same year as a member of the Bates squad and then traveled to Argentina as a member of the Bates coaching staff in 2009.

She is currently the NE-10 field hockey coaches' chair and is an active member of the NFHCA, USA Field Hockey and the Alliance of Women Coaches (NCAA Women Coaches Academy – Class 39). She is also a member of the NCAA Field Hockey Regional Advisory Committee.

King-Robitaille received her B.A. in English from Bates in 2007 and then obtained her Master's Degree in English from Cortland in 2012. She resides in Manchester with her wife, Ashley, son, Bradley, and her dog, Thando.