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Sheryl Johnson spent 18 seasons (1984-2002) at the helm of Stanford field hockey and is widely acknowledged as the principal architect of this success story. Johnson, a three-time member of the U.S. Olympic Field Hockey Team and member of the U.S. National Team for 14 years(1978-91), is a member of the only U.S. Team in history to win an Olympic Medal in Field Hockey, competing and winning the bronze medal in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles.
Coach Johnson led Stanford to nine NorPac Conference Championships and seven appearances in the NCAA playoffs. An eight-time recipient of the NorPac Coach of the Year Award (1985, ’87, ’90, ’91, ’95, ’96, ’97, ’98) and selected to coach in the 2002 NFHCA All-Start Game after her final season in 2002, Johnson posted a career 168-125-11 (.571) record in 304 career games coached at Stanford. Coach Johnson served on the Board of Directors of the United States Field Hockey Association (USFHA) and as a member of the High Performance Committee, overseeing the women’s elite teams. She served on the NCAA Field Hockey Championship Committee for six years and has served as a member of the coaching staff and selection committee at the USFHA “A Camp”, the selection site for the women’s National Team. In the summers of 2001 and 2002, Johnson was a player and mentor on the Cyclones in the nationally acclaimed U.S. Field Hockey Summer League, traveling and competing nationwide.
Johnson brought to Stanford a wealth of experience, leadership and a rich history to her coaching position. During her 14 years of National Team competition, she served in a leadership position as co-captain for six years. She participated in seven Olympic Festivals (1978, ’81, ’83, ’85, ’87, ’89, ’90) and was voted USA Field Hockey Athlete of the Year on three different occasions by her teammates (1986, ’87, ’89). Johnson played on the 1987 Pan American Games team for the U.S., earning a silver medal. Overall, she has traveled to over 20 countries to represent the U.S. in international competitions and held a long-standing record as the “most capped” player in history, tallying 137 sanctioned international matches (and close to three times that in international scrimmages). This feat was duly noted in the Guinness Book of World Records for many years. Johnson retired from the National Team in 1991 and was inducted into the USFHA Hall of Fame in May of 1994. Additional Hall of Fame inductions along the way included 1983’s induction into the Monta Vista High School Hall of Fame and the University of California Hall of Fame (her undergraduate alma mater where she lettered in field hockey, basketball, and softball). In 1990, she was the first woman to be inducted into the DeAnza Junior College Hall of Fame. Johnson was one of only a handful of former Cal athletes honored by the C-society in the Spring of 2001when she was recognized as the only woman in Cal’s history to letter in three sports.
Coach Johnson attended DeAnza Junior College before transferring to California, where she earned a Bachelor’s degree in 1980. She received her Master’s degree in education and a teaching credential from Stanford in 1981.
Last Updated: 6/10/04