The Virginia Sports Hall of Fame on Monday announced the 2024 inductees for their 51st Induction Weekend, to take place April 19-20 in Henrico County.
Jill Ellis ’88, L.H.D. ’16, a William & Mary alumna and former U.S. Women’s National Team head soccer coach, will be inducted into the hall of fame.
Ellis, originally born in England before moving to Fairfax, Virginia, in 1981, had a stellar career in green and gold starting in 1984, scoring 32 career goals as a forward for the Tribe before heading to the coaching ranks. She was a third team All-American in 1987 for W&M.
She went on to spend 14 years as a head coach at the Division I level, first at Illinois and then UCLA. Ellis’ college teams went 248-63-14 in that time frame and made eight appearances in the Women’s College Cup. She led the Bruins to six straight Pac-10 conference titles from 2003-2008 and was named the NSCAA National Coach of the Year after guiding UCLA to the national championship game in her second year in Westwood.
Ellis went on to spend 20 years with the U.S. Women’s National Team, serving as head coach from 2012 to 2019. The USWNT posted a 106-7-19 record during her time as bench boss and won back-to-back FIFA Women’s World Cups in 2015 and 2019. She has already been inducted into the U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame.
Currently, Ellis is the president of San Diego Wave FC in the National Women’s Soccer League. The team won the NWSL Shield last season for the league’s best regular season record.
The Virginia Sports Hall of Fame induction class is selected by the Hall of Fame’s Board of Directors and Honors Court Committee, selecting athletes, coaches and contributors that have connections throughout the Commonwealth.
Event and ticket information can be found at the Hall of Fame’s website.
Jill Ellis ’88, L.H.D. ’16 to be inducted into Virginia Sports Hall of Fame
The William & Mary alumna and former U.S. Women’s National Team head soccer coach will be inducted into the hall of fame.
W&M Athletics photo