Canadian national softball team captain and former all-America standout Joey Lye begins her first season as Lebanon Valley head coach in 2017.
Lye takes the reins of the program following five successful seasons as head coach at Stevenson University. She succeeds
Stacey Hollinger following the longtime head coach's promotion to associate director of athletics.
During her tenure as Mustangs' head coach, Lye built the program into a perennial playoff contender. Stevenson reached the MAC Commonwealth postseason tournament three times under her watch, including a trip to the conference championship game after a program-record 24 wins in 2013. In 2012, while Stevenson was a member of the Capital Athletic Conference, she led her squad to the CAC championship tournament following a 19-win campaign. Under her tutelage, 13 Mustangs were named to MAC Commonwealth All-Conference teams, while another earned Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-District honors in 2012.
Prior to taking over at Stevenson, Lye worked as an assistant at Williams, her alma mater, for two years. The Ephs made back-to-back NESCAC championship tournament appearances during her time on the coaching staff and posted 20 wins en route to a Little 3 title in 2011.
A standout during her time as a student-athlete at Williams College, Lye continues her playing career as a member of the Canadian national softball team. She has been a key utility player for the squad since 2010 and a captain since 2013. Against the United States in 2015, she delivered a bases-loaded single in the Pan American Games that plated two runs in extra-innings. Thanks to her clutch effort, the Canadians won the gold medal that season, upsetting the heavily favored U.S. team in the process.
In 2013, Lye led all hitters with a .500 batting average at the World Cup of Softball VII and a .611 average at the ISF XIII Women's World Championship. She went 12-for-24 with eight runs scored and two RBI at the World Cup, helping lead Canada to a third-place finish.
Lye has won a total of 12 Canadian National Championship medals, including four gold. She was named to the tournament's All-Star Team at the 2009 Junior Women's Canadian Championship as well as the 2011 and 2012 Senior Women's Canadian Championships. She was named MVP of the qualifying round in 2011 as a member of the Pickering Heat.
An NFCA Second Team All-America selection in 2008, Lye was a four-year letter winner for Williams in both softball and women's ice hockey. She was named to the NESCAC's All-Sportsmanship Team in both sports and was recognized as the top female athlete in her graduating class. She was also a member of the Williams Student-Athlete Advisory Committee Leadership Board.
Lye was a four-time All-NESCAC and NFCA New England Region First Team selection at shortstop. She set nine program records, including career batting average (.457), runs scored (150), hits (211), total bases (267), and stolen bases (62).
As a senior, Lye led the nation with a .563 batting average, setting a new Williams single-season record. She also set a school record with 22 stolen bases and was named the 2009 NESCAC and ECAC Division III New England Player of the Year. She appeared in the May 25, 2009 issue of Sports Illustrated's "Faces in the Crowd" feature and was an NFCA New England Region First-Team pick and New England Softball Coaches Association First-Team selection.
She also excelled on the ice, playing 100 games at defense for Williams, totaling 41 points with 18 goals and 23 assists. She was named co-captain as a senior while earning All-NESCAC Second-Team recognition.
As the interim women's ice hockey coach, Lye led Williams to the quarterfinals of the 2011 NESCAC Women's Ice Hockey Championship Tournament and served as tournament director for the 2011 NESCAC Men's Ice Hockey Championship.
Lye received her bachelor of science in psychology from Williams in 2009 before earning her masters of coaching and athletic administration degree from Concordia University Irvine in 2014.
