Women's Soccer | 1/10/2026 1:11:00 PM

Oberlin, Ohio – After four seasons with Oberlin College women's soccer, Assistant Coach Lydia Mitchell has been named the Head Coach of Occidental College women's soccer. She will be the fifth head coach in the program's history, and steps into the role after long-time head coach, Colm McFeely, retired at the beginning of the year.
 
"I am so grateful to have spent the last three and a half years with Oberlin Athletics." Mitchell continues, "The community at Oberlin has supported me relentlessly and taught me how to be both a competitive and compassionate coach. I'm excited to be joining the Occidental team and hopefully take everything I've learned at Oberlin with me."

In her four seasons with the Crimson and Gold, Mitchell has helped coach 12 All-North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) selections, a three-time NCAC Offensive Player of the Year, an NCAC All-Decade recipient, two All-Ohio honorees, and two United Soccer Coaches (USC) All-Region athletes. In the classroom, the Crimson and Gold have produced 40 NCAC Academic Honor Roll recipients, ten College Sports Communicators (CSC) All-District honorees, and four Academic All-Ohio awards while Mitchell was on staff. 

Most recently, Mitchell was selected to receive the Women's Sport Foundation's (WSF) Tara VanDerveer Fund for the Advancement of Women in Coaching. Oberlin is one of 11 colleges and universities to receive the grant this year and it marks the second time that the department has been selected. The fund helps to develop and provide professional experience for up and coming coaches in the industry. The cohort met in New York, New York for a multi-day educational and networking summit.
 
Head Coach Taylor Houck says, "During her time at Oberlin, Lydia made not only our team stronger, but our entire athletics community better. From volunteering for other coaches and staff, to supporting student-athletes and teams across the department, Lydia has been an incredibly present, generous, and impactful member of our community." Houck adds, "She is going to be an incredible coach, and we are so excited to watch her thrive at Occidental."
 
A national search for women's soccer's next assistant coach is underway.
 
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