While much of the focus has been placed on the inaugural coaching staff of new Penn State Football head coach Matt Campbell ahead of the 2026 season, football isn't the only sport in Happy Valley that has undergone a major coaching change this offseason.
Janelle "Nelly" Ward has been hired by Penn State to round out the inaugural coaching staff of new Nittany Lions Field Hockey head coach Hannah Prince.
The decision continues a coaching overhaul triggered in December when athletic director Pat Kraft announced the university's decision not to renew the contract of Lisa Bervinchak Love, who had served as the head coach of the field hockey team since 2023 following 29 years as an assistant on Char Morett-Curtiss' staff.
Prince, who spent the past four years as the head coach of Saint Joseph's, was hired just over one month after Bervinchak Love's departure was announced.
In addition to this week's hiring of Ward as an assistant coach, Prince has also added Mark Wadsley, who served alongside her for three years in Philadelphia, as associate head coach. That announcement came just days after Penn State announced Prince as the seventh head coach in program history.
Penn State adds assistant coach Janelle Ward
After spending two years at Southern Connecticut State, Ward spent two seasons playing goalkeeper for the Hawks during the first two years of Prince's four-year stint at Saint Joseph's. She went on to serve as a graduate assistant at Temple in 2024 before earning the title of assistant coach in 2025.
"I am thrilled to have Janelle rounding out our amazing coaching staff," Prince said in a Penn State University release. "Nellyβs coaching experience at the highly respected Temple program over the past two seasons has helped her grow tremendously."
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β Penn State Field Hockey (@PennStateFH) February 6, 2026
Ward came off the bench in seven games during the 2022 season, and the Hawks went a perfect 7-0 in those games, including 5-0 in Atlantic 10 play. She allowed just one total goal in over 180 minutes of action.
During the 2023 season, she was the full-time starter and helped lead the team to another unbeaten regular season in Atlantic 10 play, another Atlantic 10 Tournament championship, and another NCAA Tournament appearance with a goals against average of 1.14, best in the conference and top 10 nationally. The Hawks went 23-5 across her 28 games over two seasons.
"Nelly played for me at Saint Josephβs, and not only does she have experience playing for and winning conference championships, but she has also competed in goal in the NCAA Tournament," Prince continued.
"Being able to bring her on board for this next chapter of Penn State field hockey makes me incredibly proud. The knowledge, loyalty, and passion she will bring are going to make an immediate impact."
During Ward's time on Temple's staff over the past two seasons, the Owls went 24-14 and qualified for the 2024 Big East Tournament, where they earned a double overtime semifinal victory over Old Dominion before dropping a close championship game against Connecticut, a game that nearly sent them to their first NCAA Tournament since 1992.
"Iβm incredibly grateful to Hannah Prince for the opportunity to join the Nittany Lion family,β Ward stated. "Having played for her, the chance to now coach alongside her and such a great staff is truly special. Iβm beyond excited to get started and contribute to the continued success of this program."
Ward joins a coaching staff that is aiming to lead the Nittany Lions back to postseason play after back-to-back 2-6 finishes in the nine-team Big Ten left them outside of the Big Ten Tournament field for the first two times since the conference tournament's 1994 inception. The top seven teams qualify for the tournament, and Penn State finished eighth in both 2024 and 2025.
With an abundance of key contributors set to return after a 7-10 season, the Nittany Lions are also seeking to end the program's longest ever NCAA Tournament drought at three years. They have not been a part of the NCAA bracket since their 2022 run to the national semifinals, after which Morett-Curtiss announced her retirement following a stellar 36-year career as head coach.
In addition to Prince, Wadsley, and Ward, Penn State also lists Ally Hammel, who arrived as an assistant coach ahead of the 2025 season, as a member of the 2026 coaching staff on the team's official roster.