Princeton University Women's Ice Hockey

Courtney Kessel has been named the sixth head coach of women’s ice hockey at Princeton University as announced by Ford Family Director of Athletics John Mack ‘00. Kessel, who spent four seasons as an assistant coach at Princeton from 2019-23, most recently was behind the bench in the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) as head coach of the Boston Fleet. “It is an exciting moment for Princeton Women’s Ice Hockey with the return of Courtney Kessel in her new role as head coach,” said Mack. “She is a bright coaching mind with head coaching experience and success at the highest levels of professional and international hockey. She also has a wealth of knowledge about Princeton and our hockey program and knows first-hand what it requires to recruit, develop and mentor exceptional student-athletes at our University. I can’t wait to welcome Courtney, Blake and their family back to campus and support them as they begin this next chapter for Princeton Women’s Ice Hockey.” Kessel brings years of experience as a coach and leader at the collegiate, international and professional levels to Hobey Baker Rink. In addition to her time as head coach with the Fleet, she spent the 2018-19 season as head coach of the Toronto Furies in the CWHL. The first head coach in Boston Fleet history, Kessel guided the Fleet to the Walter Cup Finals in 2024. She has also been part of the coaching staff for three gold-medal winning teams with Hockey Canada, including a stint as assistant coach with the S

Brendan O'Meara began at Princeton in the fall of 2022 as Equipment Manager for the Women's Ice Hockey Team for the 2022-23 season. His daily role consists of overseeing the equipment operations for the Women's Ice Hockey Team, as well as assisting the Men's program when possible, at Baker Rink. Additionally, he assists with the Men's and Women's Volleyball programs in their equipment operations. He is responsible for the maintenance and ordering of equipment and plays a large role in the team's game day and travel operations. Prior to Princeton, Brendan comes from The American Hockey League's Hartford Wolf Pack (New York Rangers Minor League Affiliate) where he served as a member of their Equipment Staff/Visiting Room Attendant for 4 years from 2018-2022. At the same time, Brendan also worked as a Student Assistant Equipment Manager with the University of Connecticut's Men's and Women's Hockey programs from 2017-2021. Brendan Graduated from The University of Connecticut in 2021 with a Bachelor's in Communications. He is a native of West Hartford, Connecticut where he spends much of his free time on the golf course or at a baseball game. He currently resides in Somerville, NJ.

Gabe Vecchi is a professor of geosciences, the director of the High Meadows Environmental Institute, and deputy director of the Cooperative Institute for Modeling the Earth System, and is a Princeton Athletics Fellow for the women's hockey team.

Henry is the Hughes-Rogers Professor of Economics, a research associate of the industrial relations section, and is a Princeton Athletics Fellow for the hockey teams.

Jaclyn is the Director of Studies in Whitman College and is a Princeton Athletics Fellow for the hockey teams.

Bio Kevin is an officer with the Department of Public Safety and is a Princeton Athletics Fellow with the softball team.

Lars is a professor in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department and is a Princeton Athletics Fellow for the women's hockey team.

Mikko is a professor in the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering department and is a Princeton Athletics Fellow for the women's hockey team.

Morgan Bronstein joined the Princeton women's hockey staff as the Directory of Hockey Operations for the 2025-26 season following a season as the Women’s Ice...

Dr. Sasha Steinlight is the Director of Athletic Medicine at Princeton University Health Services. Dr. Steinlight joined UHS in 2010 as a team physician. She treats both the student-athlete and general student population for musculoskeletal and general medical concerns. Dr. Steinlight received her undergraduate degree in Biochemistry at Indiana University. She pursued her M.S. at Rutgers Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences in 2002 and subsequently her M.D. at Rutgers-New Jersey Medical School in 2006. She completed residency training in Family Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and then returned to New Jersey for a Sports Medicine Fellowship at Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson which she completed in 2010. She is board-certified in Family Medicine with a Certificate of Added Qualification in Sports Medicine. Outside of work, Dr. Steinlight loves spending time with her family and going to the beach.

Seth Sherman is part of the Athletics Facilities Grounds Crew, supervising the operations at Baker Rink since February of 2015. Before Princeton, Seth attended SUNY Cortland in Central New York earning a Bachelors in Outdoor Recreation with a concentration in Outdoor Leadership in 2014. While attending Cortland Seth worked at the Alumni Ice Arena, and football complex working field security. A Board member of North Eastern Ice Skating Association (NEISMA), Seth also holds a variety of ice rink related certifications such as refrigeration, ice maintenance, arena operations, and ice rink management. Seth is a diehard Buffalo Bills fan, avid outdoorsman, and attends numerous concerts throughout the year. He and his fiancée Alex, and dog Siska reside in Ewing NJ.

Shelly Picard returned to the Princeton women's hockey team to serve as an assistant coach for the 2025-26 season following a stint as an assistant coach for...

Taylor Wenczkowski joined the Princeton University women's ice hockey staff as an assistant coach ahead of the 2024-25 season. "I am honored to join the Prin...