University of Oregon

Women's SoccerTracy Joyner

Women's Soccer Head Coach

University of Oregon

ACHA M1 • NULL

2.2

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Would Recommend

Needs to better, definitely can improve

Women's SoccerTracy Joyner

Women's Soccer Head Coach

University of Oregon

ACHA M1 • NULL

1.2

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• 
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• 

Would Recommend

Honestly, I wasn’t a fan of my time with Tracy. I didn’t feel like the environment was very supportive, and I feel like I actually got worse as a player and experienced a lot of unhappiness under her coaching style. Overall, I left pretty disappointed, and I personally wouldn’t recommend her.

Women's SoccerTracy Joyner

Women's Soccer Head Coach

University of Oregon

ACHA M1 • NULL

1.0

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• 

Would Recommend

I had an extremely negative experience with this her. She was often antagonizing and discriminatory in many forms, did not know how to communicate with players without belittling them, and constantly pitted players against each other, creating cliques and division within the team. She showed little concern for players’ physical or mental health. I say this as a player who has started and played in different parts of the world under many coaches, so my concerns are not based on having only one perspective of coaching. My advice to any young player who values their confidence, self-esteem, health, and development is to pleased hour research when choosing a college coach. I understand players may praise her, but my experience was very different, and I feel it is important to share it honestly.

Women's SoccerTracy Joyner

Women's Soccer Head Coach

University of Oregon

ACHA M1 • NULL

1.0

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Would Recommend

I watched this coach for four years as the parent of a player who was a starter and played significant minutes. I say that upfront because negative reviews of coaches are too easily dismissed as coming from athletes or parents unhappy about playing time. That was not the issue here. What I witnessed was a coach who identified certain players early and treated them very differently, regardless of ability or contribution. A small group received warmth, friendship and extraordinary personal attention. Others were subjected to hostility, humiliation and intensely personal criticism. Players seemed to be either in her inner circle or a target. This went far beyond demanding coaching. I witnessed public humiliation, a lack of empathy, players being pitted against one another, and personal feelings affecting how athletes were treated. I also witnessed comments and patterns of treatment involving race that I found deeply disturbing. Over four years, I saw enough to become concerned that race played a role in how certain athletes were spoken to and treated. There were serious issues around body image as well. I became aware of multiple players who developed disordered eating while in the program after being subjected to comments about their bodies. These were young women navigating Division I athletics, often away from home for the first time, while attending a rigorous academic university. They deserved better. Perhaps the most disturbing realization came when parents finally began talking to one another. For years, many of us thought what our athlete was experiencing might be isolated. Only later did we discover multiple families had been having versions of the same experience. There was a collective realization: Why didn’t we know? Why didn’t we talk sooner? Why didn’t we go to the athletic director together? Several of us deeply regret that we didn’t. Separate from her treatment of players, I also did not consider her a strong developmental or tactical coach. Over four years, I watched talented athletes stagnate or regress. Opposing teams frequently appeared better coached, making tactical adjustments and using their depth while our players were left visibly exhausted. Too often, personal preferences seemed to interfere with decisions that should have been about developing players and winning games. College athletics should be hard. Coaches should demand excellence, hold athletes accountable and push them beyond what they think they’re capable of. Humiliation is not accountability. Discrimination is not intensity. Body shaming is not player development. And creating an environment in which selected athletes are psychologically worn down while others are welcomed into an inner circle is not good coaching. My greatest regret as a parent is that we didn’t understand the full picture soon enough to act collectively. Knowing what I know now, I would never recommend that another family entrust their daughter to this coach.

Women's SoccerTracy Joyner

Women's Soccer Head Coach

University of Oregon

ACHA M1 • NULL

1.2

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• 
• 
• 
• 

Would Recommend

I played for Tracy as a starter and witnessed a consistently toxic environment built around favoritism and manipulation. She has clear favorites who are excused for mistakes and held to different standards. Many of these favorites were solely because they had wealthy families who would donate a lot of money to the program in exchange for playing time and benefits. For example, players are required to pass a fitness test at the beginning of the season to play, yet favorites who were not able to pass were excused and allowed to play, while other players who could not pass had to repeatedly try until they passed in order to play. Some favorites would go out the night before games, be late to practices or team meetings, or lash out at other players with no consequences. Working hard and doing things right doesn't get you anywhere with her. She's dishonest, makes false promises, and even puts players against each other by starting drama on her own. I witnessed her single players out in front of the whole team to embarrass them, make racist comments, and create a psychologically damaging environment. Our team sports psychologist encouraged several girls to leave specifically because of the harassment and emotional abuse. She was also disturbingly focused on players' bodies and food, checking grocery bags, commenting on players' bodies, and requiring one teammate to lose a specific amount of weight to stay on the team, and I watched this contribute to teammates developing eating disorders. I also witnessed her play a teammate through mono who was begging to be taken off the field, to the point of her collapsing. She leads with fear, causing players to feel like they have no voice or way to stand up against her, while her favorites defend her every move. She publicly claims to support mental health and women's empowerment, but what I witnessed on this team was the exact opposite. She looks good on paper, but unless you're one of the few favorites who can do no wrong, I'd steer clear. This is an environment that can genuinely take your love for the game and replace it with real trauma.