Wofford College brings in Kevin Dempsey to lead women’s soccer program

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Wofford College announced that Kevin Dempsey has been named the new head coach of the women’s soccer program. Dempsey has 30 years of coaching experience, including as the head coach of the College of Charleston from 2001-2009.

Dempsey has spent the past nine seasons as an assistant coach at Loyola University Maryland. The Greyhounds posted a winning record in four of the last five years. He arrived at Loyola after serving one year as an assistant coach at Maryland and five seasons as the assistant coach/recruiting coordinator at LSU. In his nine seasons at the College of Charleston, he was 86-70-22 overall. He began his coaching career as the head coach at Catawba, where he was 80-45-7 in seven seasons.

“I am deeply honored to be named the new head coach of the Wofford women’s soccer program,” said Dempsey. “My family and I cannot wait to get back to South Carolina and to become a part of the Terriers! I would like to thank President Samhat, Scott Kull, and the rest of the search committee for offering me this exciting opportunity. The program has a bright future. I look forward to leading them and helping them thrive both on and off the field. I would also like to express my gratitude to everyone at Loyola University for their support over the last nine years. I am forever grateful.”

“Kevin Dempsey brings a wealth of experience and a proven track record of success to our women’s soccer program,” said Scott Kull, Robert D. Atkins ’65 Director of Athletics at Wofford. “His leadership, vision, and ability to develop student-athletes on and off the field make him the ideal fit for Wofford College. We are excited to welcome Kevin and his family to the Terrier community and look forward to the bright future he will build for our women’s soccer program.”

Last season, Loyola posted an 8-6-5 overall record. They earned a quarterfinal win in the Patriot League tournament, their sixth straight appearance in the championship. Baylee DeSmit was named the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year for the second straight season. DeSmit concluded the regular season with the Patriot League lead in shots (103), shots on goal (52), and points (32) while tying for the most goals (14) and game-winning goals (5). She was joined by Zoe Willis and Elizabeth Gallagher on the All-Patriot League teams.

In 2023, the team was 11-6 overall and 6-3 in conference play to secure a spot in the Patriot League Championship. Baylee DeSmit was named the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year, while Alex Searing, Elizabeth Gallagher, and Delaney DeMartino were also named to All-League teams.

During the 2022 season, the Greyhounds earned their first win or tie against a ranked team since the 2007 season, when the Greyhounds battled to a 0-0 tie against No. 25 Wake Forest.  All six of their wins came via shutout, as Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year, senior Pagie Sim, had another strong season in net for the Greyhounds. Sim was also named as the Patriot League Scholar Athlete of the Year, the first Greyhound to earn that honor.

Loyola posted its highest-ever finish in the Patriot League standings during the 2021 fall campaign while returning to the conference tournament for a third-straight season. The Greyhounds earned a result in 8 of 9 Patriot League matches, ultimately finishing third out of 10 schools in the conference with a 5-1-3 record. Their 18 points were just two back of first place, and it was five points above the program’s previous Patriot League high of 13.

Seven of the eight victories came via shutout, and junior Paige Sim was honored as the program’s first Patriot League Goalkeeper of the Year after leading the conference in both goals-against average (0.95) and save percentage (.809). Sim later added United Soccer Coaches Third Team All-Region and CoSIDA Second Team Academic All-America accolades.

The Greyhounds made a return trip to the Patriot League semifinals during the shortened 2021 spring season, placing second in the South division standings and allowing just three goals in six games overall. Loyola had five standouts earn All-Patriot League recognition for a second-straight season, including first team accolades for Claire Beath and Ada Clare Tempert.

Loyola earned results in 12 of 19 games in 2019, finishing with an overall record of 7-7-5 (3-2-4 Patriot League) and clinching the program’s first Patriot League tournament appearance since 2015. The Greyhounds earned a double-overtime victory over Lafayette in the quarterfinal round before being edged on penalty kicks at top-seeded Navy in the semifinals.

Loyola’s seven victories were the program’s most since 2012, and its five All-Patriot League honorees were the most since joining the conference prior to the 2013 season. Hannah Hoefs, honored as the conference’s Midfielder of the Year, led the Patriot League in both goals (9) and points (21).

During his one season at Maryland in 2015, the Terps were 6-12-1 overall in their second campaign in the Big Ten conference.

At LSU, Dempsey served as an assistant coach and the recruiting coordinator. In 2013 and 2014, Dempsey assembled the top recruiting classes in the SEC, which were ranked among the top 10 nationally. In 2014, Dempsey’s freshmen earned two spots on the All-SEC Freshmen Team, making LSU the only school to have more than one player on the league team. The previous year, three freshmen were honored with All-SEC Second Team honors, marking the first time in conference history that three freshmen from the same school made an All-SEC team. That year, the trio went on to be selected to the Freshman All-American Team by TopDrawerSoccer.com.

On the field, Dempsey’s defensive unit was pivotal in LSU winning its fourth SEC Western Division championship in five years and earning a trip to the 2011 NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in program history. They finished the season with a 13-8-1 overall record and an 8-3 mark in SEC play.

In his first year at LSU with former Furman head coach Brian Lee, Dempsey worked closely with the defensive unit, helping the team match a program record for the fewest goals allowed in a season, with 16, and nearly set a school record with a 0.72 goals-against average in 21 games. LSU finished the season tied for first in the SEC in goals allowed and second for GAA.

Dempsey spent nine years as the head coach at the College of Charleston, where he led the Cougars to a 86-70-22 overall record and a 52-32-10 mark in the Southern Conference. In all nine seasons Dempsey and the Cougars made appearances in the SoCon Tournament, including runner-up finishes in 2002 and 2009. College of Charleston earned 28 All-SoCon and All-SoCon Tournament selections under Dempsey and had multiple NSCAA All-Region Scholar Athletes. The team had a school-record 12 wins each in the 2004, 2008, and 2009 seasons.

Dempsey began his head coaching tenure at his alma mater, Catawba College, in 1994. For seven seasons, he compiled an overall record of 80-45-7, including a 47-13-3 mark in the NCAA Division II South Atlantic Conference. In all, Dempsey coached 10 NCAA Division II All-Americans, 17 All-South Region selections, four SAC Players of the Year and four SAC Freshmen of the Year.

A native of Columbia, Maryland, Dempsey graduated from Catawba in 1993 with a bachelor’s degree in history. He and his wife, Krista, have a son, Jack.

He becomes the seventh head coach in Wofford women’s soccer history, which dates back to 1994.