Women's Soccer | 7/31/2020 1:10:00 PM

MIAMI SHORES, Fla.—Sarah Dacey, who has led the Bucs to three Sunshine State Conference championships the last two years, has resigned as head women's soccer coach at Barry University, it was announced today by director of athletics, Michael L. Covone.

Dacey and her family are relocating back to her native Massachusetts, where she takes the reins as head coach at Hingham High.  

 "It's a big shift in my career as I've been coaching college for quite some time," Dacey said. "But I feel like now is the time to give back in a different way and to make sure that I help these young kids achieve their goals."

Dacey led Barry to a 45-15-5 mark in four seasons at the helm of the Buccaneers, posting a winning record all four years. In SSC play, the Bucs were even better, going 30-5-4 and winning the regular season titles in 2018 and 2019 and the conference tournament in 2018.

"I want to thank Mike Covone, Bridget Lyons, and Amanda Knight for giving me the opportunity to be the head women's soccer coach at Barry University for the past four years," Dacey said. "My time at Barry has been so rewarding on many levels. I want to thank my fellow coaches and staff in the athletic department for their support and encouragement. They truly make Barry University a special place to work. To my assistants over the years who supported me and helped me to grow, I want to say thank you.  I especially want to thank the players, past and present, who have played for me in our women's soccer program. I cannot thank them enough for their trust, their effort, and their commitment to Barry and our soccer program. I am so proud of the culture we created together. They made me a better coach and a better person and I will never forget the impact they had on my life. The memories and special moments we shared will forever be a part of me. I know the women's soccer program at Barry University will continue to thrive and have success. As I am sad to leave Barry, I am also excited to start the next chapter in my career and to raise my daughter closer to our family. Thank you to everyone at Barry for this incredible journey."

She mentored players to 24 all-conference selections, including Player of the Year Christy Grimshaw (2017 & 2018), Offensive Players of the Year Amanda Traynor (2017) and Molly Sharpe (2018) and Defensive Player of the Year Jade Adams (2018). Her peers recognized her as the league's Coach of the Year the last two seasons.

Barry University has been one of the preeminent women's soccer programs since the advent of NCAA Division II. The Bucs have won three national championships and 11 regular season and three tournament championships in the SSC. They have crowned two national players of the year, two national coaches of the year, 42 All-Americans on the soccer coaches list and six more from D2SIDA. The program's overall record is 426-143-40 (.732).

Barry will begin a national search for her replacement immediately.