Chaney Eldridge - Field Hockey Coach - University of Richmond Athletics

Chaney Eldridge

Title:
Assistant Coach
Email:
cmangane@richmond.edu
Phone:
287-1930

Now in her seventh season with the Spider Hockey program in 2024, Chaney Eldridge was elevated to Associate Head Coach in December of 2021 after wrapping up her fourth season as an assistant coach with the Spiders.

Over the last six seasons, Eldridge has coached 17 Atlantic 10 All-Conference First and Second Team honorees, as well as seven All-Rookies and eight A-10 All-Tournament student-athletes. The program has also had five National Field Hockey All-South Region honorees and over 70 student-athletes named to NFHCA All-Academic Team.

The 2022 squad was offensively paced by A-10 First Team and NFHCA All-Region honoree Lindsey Frank for a second-straight season with eight goals and five assists for 21 points. Defender Tess Keppel collected second team league honors leading the league with five of the Spiders seven defensive saves. Keppel's five defensive saves, including two against Wake Forest, ranked seventh nationally, while the team's seven total defensive saves ranks 16th nationally. Lainey Nichols collected A-10 All-Rookie accolades after scoring five goals, with two against Bucknell.

After a quick summer off-season, the 2021 Spiders made it's 21st-straight program appearances in the Atlantic 10 Conference Championship Tournament. Steffie Bongers and Lindsey Frank collected A-10 First Team honors, while Olivia Frazier collected second team accolades. The trio led the squad with 16 of the team's 26 goals, 14 assists and 46 of the squads 76 points. Frank, a A-10 Tournament selection, had seven goals and six assists as a midfielder for 20 points, while Bongers was just behind with six goals and five assists, including two goals and two assists against Saint Louis. Kaitlyn Csensits was second in the league with three of the squad's seven defensive saves, which ranked 15th nationally.

Since joining the staff in 2018, Eldridge has helped the program reach new heights in all facets of the game. In the spring 2021 season, Richmond had three players ranked nationally in the top-10 of four different statistical categories. Midfielder Olivia Frazier finished second in assists-per-game (0.86), as defender Steffie Bongers placed fifth in goals-per-game (1.00) and 10th in points-per-game (2.17), and goalkeeper Erika Latta was eighth in save percentage (.812) and 10th in goals against average (0.91). The Spiders have gone to four-straight Atlantic 10 Tournaments to extend the program’s streak to 20-straight postseason appearances, including a 2019 championship berth.

Eldridge helped coach the Spiders to an 11-10 record -- the program's first winning record since 2015 -- and 6-2 mark in Atlantic 10 play in 2019 to tie for second place in the league. The Spiders defeated UMass 3-1 in the Atlantic 10 Tournament semifinals as the No. 3 seed, and fell in a defensive battle to No. 13 Saint Joseph's in the team's first Championship Game appearance since 2015. Senior Elise Zwicklbauer earned First Team All-Conference honors, while senior Amanda DaSilva and sophomores Steffie Bongers and Addie Nash earned Second Team honors and freshman Lindsey Frank was named to the All-Rookie Team.

Eldridge helped lead the Spiders to the program's 18th-consecutive Atlantic 10 Tournament in 2018 after finishing the regular season at 4-4 in the conference. The Spiders fell to 10th-ranked Saint Joseph's in the A-10 Semifinals, 3-1, finishing the season at 7-11 overall. Newcomers Addie Nash and Steffie Bongers were named to the A-10 All-Rookie Team, while junior Elise Zwicklbauer and sophomore Abra Granger were named to the conference's All-Academic Team

Eldridge joined the Spiders after serving as an assistant coach at Longwood for three seasons. While with the Lancers, she helped the team to two straight conference tournaments as an affiliate member of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) in 2016 and 2017.

Before her stint at Longwood, Eldridge spent a season as a graduate assistant at VCU, where she assisted in developing on-field training sessions and spearheaded the program’s service and community outreach initiatives.

A former standout at William & Mary, Eldridge (née Manganello) played in the midfield and on the back line from 2010-2013. She served as the team captain for the Tribe as a senior, earning Second Team All-CAA and CAA All-Tournament honors to close out her career.

Eldridge has also served as an indoor coach for the U16 Richmond Panthers United Field Hockey Club, as well as a head coach for the Futures Field Hockey Program in Williamsburg.

A native of Richmond, she earned her Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology and health science from William & Mary in 2014, and her master’s degree in education from the VCU Center for Sport Leadership. She resides in Richmond with her husband, Wes.