How Michelle Vittese turned Temple field hockey into a Big East tournament contender

Michelle Vittese had no plans of becoming the head field hockey coach at Temple when she did. She was brought in as an assistant under former coach Susan Ciufo’s staff in 2019. It was Vittese’s first taste of collegiate coaching.

Just days before the 2021 preseason started, the Cherry Hill native was suddenly asked to take the helm as an interim head coach, after Ciufo resigned for mental health and family reasons.

Vittese was ready for the challenge, she said. During her first year, the former three-time All-American at the University of Virginia, who spent eight years with the U.S. Women’s national field hockey team, led the Owls to their first conference-winning record since 2015 and qualified for the Big East tournament.

That performance was more than enough to earn her the full-time job.

Since then, Vittese has turned Temple into a premier field hockey program and a regular contender in the Big East. The Owls haven’t missed the Big East tournament nor won fewer than 10 games since her interim season. The Owls’ success has carried into this season, where Temple has a 10-3 record, despite having a younger roster.

“We have a blueprint now,” said Vittese, a graduate of Camden Catholic High School. “I think developing that over the last four years, we’ve changed things year to year as new information has come out. You have to constantly be open to learning and evolving. Something for me is I never think I’m smarter than anyone else in the room. I always want to ask questions. I always want to figure out what the best-case scenario is for this team.”

While Vittese’s coaching experience outside of Temple has been brief, she credits her playing days for preparing her for the head position.

The former midfielder earned 211 international caps and played in the 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics. Competing at that level exposed Vittese to different aspects of the game that eventually helped her get started at Temple.

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“I think having those life experiences and being able to play and perform within a high-performance environment,” Vittese said. “Learning the standards and learning what a proper culture at a higher performance level should look like, that was actually what trained me to be a part of this.”

Temple’s trajectory has continued to rise since Vittese had the interim tag removed. She guided the Owls to 13 wins in 2022, their most since 2014, then 11 wins in 2023 against a much harder schedule.

The 2024 season was another milestone for Vittese and the program. Temple won 12 games and earned five conference wins, the most since 2012. Then, in the Big East tournament, the Owls knocked off Old Dominion to reach the championship for the first time under Vittese, before losing to UConn.

While the 35-year-old has adjusted to changes in the game, Vittese prioritizes international recruiting, knowing there is elite talent in other countries, like the Netherlands or Argentina.

Her coaching style has also kept Temple consistent on the field. She holds herself to a high standard and does the same for her players.

“She’s tough but I think that it comes from a place of love,” said senior midfielder Halle Aschenbach. “She has high expectations for all of us and believes in us. I think that her toughness comes from a place where she knows that we can meet her standards, that she holds for herself and that she wants everyone to go in the same direction toward our goal of getting the Big East [championship].”

The team’s success under Vittese through her first four years came largely from the same core group. The headliners — midfielders Tess Muller and Devin Kinzel, and back Alizé Maes — all graduated last season after being all-conference players. Coming into this season, Vittese’s roster consisted of 10 freshmen and many with limited playing time.

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However, Temple has jumped out to a hot start and is fourth in the Big East standings, with two wins and two losses. Also, Vittese collected her 50th career win against Drexel on Sept. 16, becoming the sixth coach in program history to reach the mark.

“We have always had a group willing to put themselves on the line,” Vittese said. “I don’t know if it comes from our style of leadership, or if it comes from the Temple energy and kind of grittiness.”

They’ll have a tough test on Friday with a road matchup against Old Dominion (5-7, 3-1). After the Owls fell short of their goal of winning a Big East title last season, they have used that as motivation to get back there.

“I do use [the loss] every now and again as a powerful reminder of experiencing that was a privilege,” Vittese said. “It really was. … So I would say, regardless of win or loss, it’s still a privilege. So recognizing, in order to get there, they have to earn it.”