CHAMPAIGN, IL (Chambana Today) – Head Soccer Head Coach Janet Rayfield will be retiring after 23 seasons as the head coach once her successor is in place.
Rayfield was named the program’s third head coach of Fighting Illini Soccer in 2002. She guided her teams to 10 NCAA Tournaments, while capturing two Big Ten Tournament Titles. Rayfield stands as the winningest coach in program history, with an overall record of 234-183-45.
Rayfield talked about the mixed emotions she is feeling as she is preparing to leave the program she has loved. “There is a quote that reads, ‘In any moment, joy can co-exist with grief or sorrow and laughter can share space with pain.’ I am retiring with great joy and in celebration of all this program has given me…I depart with an equal measure of sadness and angst knowing how much I will miss the athletes and the comradery that comes from being a part of such a special program.”
During her career as Illinois head coach, Rayfield produced seven All-Americans, seven Big Ten Players of the Year, 17 All-Big Ten First Team and 50 overall All-Big Ten selections. Seven players went on to be play professional soccer in America, while 10 players she coached played their national teams.
Illinois Director of Athletics Josh Whitman sang her praises as a person and a coach. “Janet Rayfield is a legend in the sport of soccer, and a transformative leader we are so fortunate to have had directing our program these past 23 seasons. She is a pioneer; one of the first college stars as women’s soccer transitioned from AIAW to the NCAA, and whose accomplishments as a player have withstood the test of time. She then dedicated more than three decades to the coaching profession, impacting the lives of thousands of young women along the way. I have so much respect for her leadership, how she inspires her teams, and the lasting relationships she builds with her athletes.”
Rayfield reached the NCAA Tournament 10 times in her first 12 seasons. In 2003, Rayfield compiled a 16-4-2 record and winning the program’s first-ever Big Ten Tournament championship. She was recognized as Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year. In 2015, Rayfield again received recognition for her contributions to the game by the NSCAA, earning the Women’s Soccer Award of Excellence.
Rayfield continued that success in 2004, when Illinois matched the prior year’s win total (16) while advancing to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. Rayfield’s first decade of leadership at Illinois culminated in one of the most successful seasons in program history in 2011, with the Illini earning a record of 17-5-2, the Big Ten Tournament title and another NCAA Tournament appearance.
In 2012, following a ninth NCAA Tournament appearance in 11 seasons, Rayfield became the first female coach to receive the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Honor Award. Rayfield also served as an assistant coach on the U.S. Women’s U-20 National Team that won the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Japan.