Northwestern University Athletics
Ali Johnstone Named Northwestern Assistant Coach
4/27/2011 12:00:00β―AM | Field Hockey
April 27, 2011
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EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern head coach Tracey Fuchs announced Wednesday (April 27) that Ali Johnstone will join the Northwestern coaching staff as an assistant coach effective immediately. Johnstone comes to Evanston after coaching two seasons at her alma mater, Ohio University.
"We are thrilled about the addition of Ali to our staff at Northwestern," Fuchs said. "Having played for Team Canada and coached at Ohio University, she is going to bring a tremendous amount of passion and experience to our program. Ali will be an asset to our defensive unit and also play an instrumental role in recruiting high-caliber future Wildcats to Evanston."
During Johnstone's first season on staff at Ohio, the Bobcats won their third MAC championship in a span of four years and finished with a 12-9 overall record. OU followed that up in 2010 by going 7-3 in MAC play and reaching the semifinals of the conference tournament.
"I am extremely excited to become a member of the Wildcat family," Johnstone said. "I am looking forward to being part of such an extraordinary program in an elite athletic department. Northwestern has a world-class coaching staff with Tracey and April (Bertin) and a team of dedicated student-athletes. I look forward to giving all that I can to add to this program and to represent Northwestern in the highest way possible."
Johnstone brings a wealth of playing and coaching experience to Evanston. A two-time NFHCA All-American and the first Bobcat to earn first-team All-MAC each of her four seasons in Athens, she graduated from Ohio in 2002 as one of the most decorated players in program history. Johnstone was a three-time first-team All-West Region honoree as well as the 2001 Ohio Female Student-Athlete of the year. She has the career record for assists (36) and ranks third in all time points (106) and fourth all-time in goals (35).
Like Fuchs and Northwestern assistant April Bertin, Johnstone gained extensive experience at the international playing level. A native of Delta, British Columbia, Johnstone played nine years and earned 35 caps for the Canadian national team. In 2005-06, Johnstone played professionally for Hamburg in the German Premier Division.
Before beginning her collegiate coaching career at Ohio, Johnstone was the head coach for the U-19 British Columbia Provincial A team in 2007 and the U-16 Regional High Performance team from 2006-2008. Johnstone is also involved with USA field hockey as a head Futures coach, a regional and national Futures tournament selector and a Junior High Performance Program volunteer coach.
Johnstone earned her bachelor's degree in sports sciences from Ohio in 2002.
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