Boston College Athletics
Photo by: John Quackenbos
Foster-Ing BC's Field Hockey Culture
February 22, 2022 | Field Hockey, #ForBoston Files
BC assistant coach Mark Foster is one of Kelly Doton's most trusted lieutenants and one of the most elite coaches in the sport.
The past three years have offered some of the best and brightest moments for Boston College field hockey.
The moments contained ups and downs, but the highlight reel goals and breathtaking saves positioned the Eagles for entry into a golden era. A relatively-young program, one with less than 50 years of history, competed with the best in the nation, and a team built from players from every corner of the globe are blending an attitude that's now the bedrock of a culture.
Standing behind that curtain is a coaching staff that understands exactly how to build a program for a new generation. It, too, comes from different parts of the globe and combines elements of how they each individually learned the game. At the helm, head coach Kelly Doton is a former American field hockey star who once represented the United States at the Olympics, but her team of assistants includes Mark Foster, an Englishman who grew up in the very origins and blends the American way of thinking with a finger on the pulse of the heartbeat of the sport.
"Mark's versatility in coaching is what sets him apart," Doton said. "He has the ability to coach offense, defense, backs and, specifically, goalkeeper. He was never a goalkeeper, so when the goalkeeping position opened, Mark took the lead on it. He educated himself and got better in that area, and that's one of the things that makes him brilliant."
A nation's individual success often gives rise to a natural, unique style, but the concept of American field hockey exists because of the mixture of different styles originating from several different nations. It never had the natural heights or cultural roots of other countries, but the aging of the sport infused its growth with European influence.
It's especially true in college field hockey, which is widely considered the top of the American pyramid. The best of the best represent their native countries at the international level, but the concept of playing for a particular club or franchise litters college rosters with players from the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Argentina, all countries that excel on the international stage.
In that respect, the notion of "American field hockey" absorbed pieces of every nation and instead twisted it into its own brand of game. At Boston College, bringing those international players onto a roster with the hard-nosed, tough Americans also fostered more appreciation for the newness of a nation that was willing to learn as much as it was offering to teach.
"I am a firm believer that there's more than one way to teach a skill," Doton said. "He may have learned skills differently from me, and there's no one way to teach it. That's what we tell our players. We want them to learn things differently, and every time Mark teaches a drill or technical skill, I listen to him because he's got a great background. He has that respect and admiration from our players, and they've developed and gotten better because of it."
It attained undeniable success through both overall wins and through the honors obtained by the individual athletes. Foster helped Doton turn BC into a national powerhouse, and goalkeeper Sarah Dwyer, a former backup, became a First Team All-America after his tutelage turned her into one of the best goalies in the nation. She single handedly backstopped the Eagles into both the Elite Eight and Final Four in 2019 with a particularly impressive run that saw her stop seven shots against No. 5 Louisville, the host institution for BC's regional in the tournament, with a dramatic, save-after-save performance that combined the gritty American mindset with the skills taught by Foster, her position coach.
BC, a program that never went to a Final Four before that season, finished the year No. 3 and produced several other All-America selections after that year ended. Fusine Govaert eventually won three honors, while Ymke Rose Gote and Frederique Haverhals, two Dutch imports, earned two awards. Margo Carlin joined them while also winning the ACC Freshman of the Year during that 2019 season.
To that degree, working at BC built on his years of experience within the American club and national systems that predated his arrival at Chestnut Hill. He coached in the United States' performance pathway as part of its Futures Program upon arriving in the country and spent time over three years with the Under-16 programs in New Jersey and New England and the Under-19 program in New England.
That grassroots level enabled him to develop strength and conditioning, and video analysis, for young athletes, and with his involvement in the U-16 and U-19 programs, he represented the United States as part of the staff for the United States National Indoor Team, success that helped continue the development of the American field hockey pyramid.
"Mark hadn't coached at the collegiate level but had experience at the most successful club program in the country," Doton said. "I spoke with him on the phone and brought him in for an interview, and I found that his knowledge of hockey and his vision for culture was exactly what I was looking for."
This past season, wins over nationally-recognized programs lifted BC to the cusp of the national tournament, but the bubble burst following a 2-0 loss to Virginia in the ACC Championship. A fifth consecutive winning season that included a win over the eventual national champion Northwestern also saw the Eagles defeat Maryland, but even a regular season win over UVa wasn't enough to lift them back into the bracket. Nevertheless, there's no questioning what's been installed in Chestnut Hill, and the build, though it continues, involves a championship expectation brought by a coaching staff that unquestionably has the capability to influence both the game and the overall sport for decades to come.
The moments contained ups and downs, but the highlight reel goals and breathtaking saves positioned the Eagles for entry into a golden era. A relatively-young program, one with less than 50 years of history, competed with the best in the nation, and a team built from players from every corner of the globe are blending an attitude that's now the bedrock of a culture.
Standing behind that curtain is a coaching staff that understands exactly how to build a program for a new generation. It, too, comes from different parts of the globe and combines elements of how they each individually learned the game. At the helm, head coach Kelly Doton is a former American field hockey star who once represented the United States at the Olympics, but her team of assistants includes Mark Foster, an Englishman who grew up in the very origins and blends the American way of thinking with a finger on the pulse of the heartbeat of the sport.
"Mark's versatility in coaching is what sets him apart," Doton said. "He has the ability to coach offense, defense, backs and, specifically, goalkeeper. He was never a goalkeeper, so when the goalkeeping position opened, Mark took the lead on it. He educated himself and got better in that area, and that's one of the things that makes him brilliant."
A nation's individual success often gives rise to a natural, unique style, but the concept of American field hockey exists because of the mixture of different styles originating from several different nations. It never had the natural heights or cultural roots of other countries, but the aging of the sport infused its growth with European influence.
It's especially true in college field hockey, which is widely considered the top of the American pyramid. The best of the best represent their native countries at the international level, but the concept of playing for a particular club or franchise litters college rosters with players from the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Argentina, all countries that excel on the international stage.
In that respect, the notion of "American field hockey" absorbed pieces of every nation and instead twisted it into its own brand of game. At Boston College, bringing those international players onto a roster with the hard-nosed, tough Americans also fostered more appreciation for the newness of a nation that was willing to learn as much as it was offering to teach.
"I am a firm believer that there's more than one way to teach a skill," Doton said. "He may have learned skills differently from me, and there's no one way to teach it. That's what we tell our players. We want them to learn things differently, and every time Mark teaches a drill or technical skill, I listen to him because he's got a great background. He has that respect and admiration from our players, and they've developed and gotten better because of it."
It attained undeniable success through both overall wins and through the honors obtained by the individual athletes. Foster helped Doton turn BC into a national powerhouse, and goalkeeper Sarah Dwyer, a former backup, became a First Team All-America after his tutelage turned her into one of the best goalies in the nation. She single handedly backstopped the Eagles into both the Elite Eight and Final Four in 2019 with a particularly impressive run that saw her stop seven shots against No. 5 Louisville, the host institution for BC's regional in the tournament, with a dramatic, save-after-save performance that combined the gritty American mindset with the skills taught by Foster, her position coach.
BC, a program that never went to a Final Four before that season, finished the year No. 3 and produced several other All-America selections after that year ended. Fusine Govaert eventually won three honors, while Ymke Rose Gote and Frederique Haverhals, two Dutch imports, earned two awards. Margo Carlin joined them while also winning the ACC Freshman of the Year during that 2019 season.
To that degree, working at BC built on his years of experience within the American club and national systems that predated his arrival at Chestnut Hill. He coached in the United States' performance pathway as part of its Futures Program upon arriving in the country and spent time over three years with the Under-16 programs in New Jersey and New England and the Under-19 program in New England.
That grassroots level enabled him to develop strength and conditioning, and video analysis, for young athletes, and with his involvement in the U-16 and U-19 programs, he represented the United States as part of the staff for the United States National Indoor Team, success that helped continue the development of the American field hockey pyramid.
"Mark hadn't coached at the collegiate level but had experience at the most successful club program in the country," Doton said. "I spoke with him on the phone and brought him in for an interview, and I found that his knowledge of hockey and his vision for culture was exactly what I was looking for."
This past season, wins over nationally-recognized programs lifted BC to the cusp of the national tournament, but the bubble burst following a 2-0 loss to Virginia in the ACC Championship. A fifth consecutive winning season that included a win over the eventual national champion Northwestern also saw the Eagles defeat Maryland, but even a regular season win over UVa wasn't enough to lift them back into the bracket. Nevertheless, there's no questioning what's been installed in Chestnut Hill, and the build, though it continues, involves a championship expectation brought by a coaching staff that unquestionably has the capability to influence both the game and the overall sport for decades to come.
Players Mentioned
F
/ Field Hockey
GK
/ Field Hockey
M
/ Field Hockey
M/F
/ Field Hockey
B/M
/ Field HockeyWomen's Basketball: Head Coach Kate Popovec-Goss on ACCPM (April 2, 2026)
Friday, April 03
#22 Baseball Defeats #6 North Carolina (April 2, 2026)
Friday, April 03
Kate Popovec-Goss Introductory Press Conference
Thursday, April 02
Football: Bill O'Brien Media Availability (April 1, 2026)
Wednesday, April 01
