The first coach in Hartford women’s lacrosse program history, Meg Decker enters her fourth season at the helm of the Hawks in 2021. Building the program from the ground up, she was hired as head coach on August 2, 2016, 10 months after the University of Hartford Department of Athletics announced the addition of women’s lacrosse as a varsity sport.
The 2020 campaign showed signs of promise and significant progress before the COVID-19 pandemic cut the season short after just seven games.
The offense saw a considerable jump in production compared to last season. Hartford was putting up program-best numbers in goals per game (7.57), points per game (10.71) and assists per game (3.14) before the campaign came to an abrupt end on March 12.
The draw control unit was another aspect of the game that was coming together under Decker in her third year in 2020. The Hawks posted a program-record .473 winning percentage on draw controls, while their 13.00 draw controls per game were also a program-best mark.
For the first time in program history, Hartford landed not one, but two, America East All-Academic Team honorees in 2020. Megan Miller and Emma Privitera each took home the honor, which recognizes 11 America East women’s lacrosse student-athletes for their outstanding success on the field and in the classroom.
Academic success is instilled throughout Decker’s program. Last season, the women’s lacrosse team landed more America East Honor Roll members than any other team in the department, as 89 percent of the roster — a total of 34 student-athletes — bestowed the honor. Most impressively, 28 of those recognized earned Commissioner’s Honor Roll distinction for achieving a grade point average of 3.5 or higher.
The 2019 season was a year of tremendous growth for Decker’s Hawks. Hartford defeated Delaware State for the second straight year, earning an 18-goal victory for the program’s first-ever road win.
With Decker’s guidance, Emma Privitera became the first player in program history to earn All-Conference distinction after landing a spot on the All-Rookie Team. The goalie had a solid rookie campaign as she finished that season ranked No. 3 in NCAA Division I — and first among the nation’s freshmen — in saves per game with 11.23.
After spending the 2016-17 academic year building the Hawks’ women’s lacrosse program, Decker guided Hartford on the field during the 2018 inaugural season. Hartford came out on top in its first-ever game, scoring a program-record 20 goals en route to defeating Delaware State Feb. 24, 2018. Additionally, the 16-goal margin of victory (20-4) was a program-high.
Debbie Phillips was named the America East Rookie of the Week two days after that historic win. The Hawks finished their first year of athletic competition by being named an Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) Zag Sports Academic Honor Squad, with Danielle DeMarco and Billy McLaughlin each earning spots on the Division I Academic Honor Roll.
Hartford announced the addition of women’s lacrosse as a varsity sport in October 2015. At the time, the Hawks were the eighth of nine America East schools to sponsor women’s lacrosse. The addition of NJIT to the league in July 2020 elevated the number of America East women’s lacrosse programs to nine.
Decker is no stranger when it comes to building collegiate women’s lacrosse programs. She helped build Virginia Commonwealth University’s women’s lacrosse program from scratch as an assistant coach, and was a student-athlete on the inaugural women’s lacrosse team at the United States Naval Academy.
Prior to landing at Hartford, Decker spent two years as an assistant at VCU. Working alongside head coach Jen O’Brien, she assisted with the building of the program from her hiring in 2014, and helped coach the team in its first season as a varsity program in 2016. In this role, Decker simultaneously brought in three different recruiting classes, blended recruited student-athletes with existing club team players, and fundraised and marketed for the brand new program.
In their inaugural season in 2016, the Rams were ranked highest among the five first-year Division I programs. VCU won its first-ever game, defeating Gardnerr-Webb, 21-9, before earning a conference victory later in the season against St. Bonaventure.
Decker has amassed coaching experience by serving as the head coach of Flash Club Women's Lacrosse in Tustin, Calif., and as the director of the Whirlwind Lacrosse Tournament in Newport Beach, Calif. She has also been an individual instructor, coaching midfielders and draw specialists nationally.
A native of Catonsville, Md., Decker enjoyed a standout collegiate career, spending two years at Navy (2008-09) and two at Loyola (2010-11). She helped lead Loyola to a school-record 17 wins, a BIG EAST Championship and an NCAA Quarterfinal appearance in her final season.
Decker finished her career with 113 goals and 154 draw controls as a collegian. She was a two-time All-BIG EAST selection at Loyola.
After graduating, Decker was invited to the U.S. Lacrosse National Pool Tryouts in 2015. In the inaugural draft of the United Women’s Lacrosse League, she was selected by the Philadelphia Force in May 2016. She continued her professional career with the Boston Storm Defender, where she spent two seasons as a midfielder.
Decker graduated from Loyola in 2009 with a degree in psychology. She continued her education at Hartford, earning a Master’s of Science in industrial and organizational psychology.
