As the only Head Women’s Soccer Coach in UC Riverside history, Veronica O’Brien took the Highlanders from merely a concept on paper to its first-ever NCAA postseason berth. She came to UCR with an international reputation for her play on the Canadian National Team and as a University of New Hampshire Hall of Honor inductee.
The 2005 season was an historic one for O’Brien and the Highlanders, who gained their first-ever NCAA Tournament berth with an 11-4-6 record. Despite being picked to finish seventh in the preseason coaches poll, O’Brien led UCR to an undefeated 4-0-3 record in the Big West Conference as Riverside placed a program-best second, reaching the Big West Tournament final for the first time in school history. During the regular season, the Highlanders put together an 11-match unbeaten run and tied the school record with 10 shutouts for the year.
For her efforts, O’Brien was named the conference’s Co-Coach of the Year while four players were named to the All-Big West teams. Senior midfielder/forward Renee Scachetti broke the school single-season and career scoring records, notching 13 goals and 31 points in 2005 to finish her illustrious career with 29 goals and 71 points. At the conclusion of the 2005 regular season, UCR garnered the conference’s first-ever at-large bid to the postseason and UCR’s first NCAA Championship berth for a women’s program. Matching up against No. 19 Colorado in the first round, the Highlanders took the game into penalty kicks after 110 scoreless minutes of regulation and two overtime periods. Colorado advanced 4-3 on penalty kicks but UCR proved that it deserved to be included among the nation’s elite programs.
With the loss of six seniors from 2005, O’Brien brought in 14 new players for the 2006 season in what was supposed to be a rebuilding year. Instead, the Highlanders posted their fifth consecutive 10-win season, going 10-7-1 overall. During the season, two milestones were achieved as senior goalkeeper Tawny Poggio became the Big West’s all-time leader in saves at Pacific on October 8, while O’Brien reached 100 career victories with a 3-0 home win over UC Irvine on October 20.
A native of Barrie, Ontario, Canada, O’Brien was selected by the University of California, Riverside to usher in the Highlander program in the fall of 2001. The inaugural women’s soccer season meant no home field (UCR traveled to the San Bernardino Blast complex nearly 20 miles away for each “home" game) and a team with very little collegiate playing experience. Even so, UCR won its first-ever match, 3-0 over Nevada, and followed that up with a 6-0 victory over Southern Utah. The Highlanders went on to a respectable 5-12-0 mark in their first season in existence.
UCR doubled its win total in 2002, turning in a 10-8-1 overall campaign, including a 4-4-1 mark in the Big West. In 2003, the Highlanders improved to 11-7-3 overall and 5-3-1 in conference play to place third and earn their first appearance in the Big West Tournament. UCR fell behind UC Santa Barbara 2-0 in the semifinals but battled back to 3-2 in the final minutes before bowing out. The 2003 season also saw the Highlanders place a player on the All-Big West First-Team for the first time, as junior defender Kristi Tanaka earned the honor. Tanaka earned Second-Team nods her previous two seasons and added to her collection in 2004 with another First-Team selection to become the first UCR player to earn honors all four years.
In 2004, O’Brien guided the Highlanders to their third consecutive 10-win season. That squad also set school records for most wins (13), goals (45), points (129), and shutouts (9), while also allowing the fewest goals of any Highlander team (14). With two overtime losses leaving UCR with a 13-2-4 record, the 2004 Highlanders were one of just two teams in Division I to go the entire season without a loss in regulation play. UCR continued to add to its conference accolades as Tanaka and Scachetti garnered All-Big West First Team honors to become the first UC Riverside teammates to earn such distinction.
Prior to joining the Highlanders, O’Brien was hired by the University of Texas, El Paso to lead its inaugural program for the 1996 season. In her five years at UTEP, the Miners evolved into a league power, earning a final Central Region top-10 ranking in both 1998 and 1999. In 1998 she received the Western Athletic Conference Mountain Division Coach of the Year Award while guiding her team to the WAC Mountain Division title, notching wins over Pac-10, Big Ten, and Big 12 Conference teams.
Her dedication to physical and scholastic growth has led to numerous Academic All-America and Academic All-Conference honorees as well as dozens of on-field national, regional and conference honors.
O’Brien joined UTEP after spending 1994 and 1995 as an assistant coach at her alma mater, the University of New Hampshire. During her tenure at UNH she worked with the Olympic Development Program as an assistant and started the women’s Division I volleyball program, serving as head coach in 1995.
O’Brien was an outstanding center midfielder for UNH from 1990-93. A three-time All-North Atlantic Conference honoree, a two-time Northeast Region All-American and an adidas Scholar Athlete All-American in 1993, she finished her career as the fourth-highest point scorer in NAC history as a defensive center midfielder with 51 points (16 goals, 19 assists).
On the international scene, O’Brien was a center midfielder for the Canadian National team from 1989-1998 and was the starting center midfielder for the 1995 Canadian team that competed in the 1995 World Cup in Sweden. She also represented Canada in the 1993 World University Games and 1991 World Cup Qualification Games, as well as Team Ontario in the 1992 Canada Olympic Games. Throughout her career she played soccer matches in over 20 different countries.
Just as impressive as her soccer teams’ stats on the field has been their progress in the classroom. O’Brien’s athletes have helped set a standard of academic excellence for UCR athletes. O’Brien’s penchant for academic success was evident during her playing years as she was named the UNH Scholar Athlete of the Year her junior year. In addition, she was awarded the Barbara King Newman Scholar Award as a top student in her major after six semesters in a row earning a 4.0 GPA. She was inducted into the UNH Hall of Honor in 2001.
Her commitment to the classroom is evidenced by the perennial academic success of her squad. In her tenure at UC Riverside, O’Brien’s teams have consistently posted over a 3.0 GPA. In addition, the team was awarded the National Soccer Coaches Association of America and adidas Academic Award for exceptional academic performance as a team for the year of 2002. She has also had two players named to the Academic All-District teams.
O’Brien is a member of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. From 2006-10 she served on the NCAA Men's and Women's Soccer Rules Committee and chaired the committee from 2009-10.
She completed her master's degree in coaching and athletics administration from Concordia University in July of 2011.
In her free time she enjoys running, hiking and biking. She resides in Murrieta with her husband, York Strother, who is the Highlander’s men’s tennis coach, and their dog, Jake.
