Dr. Todd Olsen took over the Lynchburg women's soccer program ahead of the 1994 season and in the time since has built a perennial conference and regional powerhouse and a consistent NCAA postseason tournament participant, capping it off with a national title in 2014.
Olsen led the 2014 Hornets to a 27-0-1 record, tying for the most wins in Division III history en route to the national championship. He was named ODAC, state, regional, and national coach of the year for his efforts. His team produced three All-Americans in the 2014 campaign, while sitting atop the national leaders in defense and scoring the entire season.
Since his arrival, the Hornets have posted 28 winning campaigns and have advanced to the NCAA tournament 21 times. In 2000, Olsen led his team to the school’s first ever NCAA tournament win for either men or women. Since 2000, his squads have been to the Final Four of the NCAA tournament (2009, 2014), the Elite 8 four times, and the Sweet 16 seven times. Under Olsen’s leadership, his teams have won 482 matches. Also during his tenure, the squad has produced 91 all-region, 107 all-state, 195 All-Old Dominion Athletic Conference, five Academic All-Americans, and 23 NCAA All-Americans.
In 2022, the Hornets won their 17th ODAC championship and made the program's 21st appearance in the NCAA tournament. Haleigh Casey was crowned an All-American for her perfroamnce on a Lyncburg defense that only allowed 0.36 goals per match. Lynchburg has 16 shutouts in 2022 which was the third-best shutout percentage in Division III at .727. The Hornets also put seven players on all-conference teams, two on all-state teams, and three on all-region teams.Â
A native of Pittsburgh, Pa., Olsen received his bachelor’s degree in Health and Physical Education in 1985 from Slippery Rock University in Slippery Rock, Pa., where he was a two-time Academic All-America selection. After graduation, Olsen traveled to England and attended Loughborough University, earning his master’s degree in 1987 after completing a comprehensive soccer coaching regimen. In 1992, Olsen rounded out his academic career at the University of Pittsburgh where he earned a master’s degree in public health and a Ph.D. in epidemiology.
Aside from on-the-field coaching and classroom teaching, Olsen is actively involved with service and study abroad projects both locally and globally. He has taken the women’s soccer team on soccer/service trips to Argentina and Costa Rica. In addition, he has partnered with Sports Outreach Institute and serves in a volunteer role as the community public health epidemiologist. He has traveled to African nations multiple times in this role, where he is able to utilize his unique background as soccer coach and epidemiologist. He has developed and implemented community health workshops and programs on community public health issues in Kenya and Uganda. His work has helped serve some of the world’s poorest people with these training sessions.
In 2012, Olsen was inducted into the Capital One CoSIDA Academic All-America Hall of Fame, which honors his philanthropic and coaching achievements. In the fall of 2012, he was inducted into the Slippery Rock University Athletic Hall of Fame.
