Girls Soccer is off to a roaring start, and much of that is the sheer determination of the players, driven this season by the high hopes of their new coach, Tom Worthington. A longtime respected coach at the travel club Players Development Academy (PDA), Coach Worthington had his sights set on joining Pingry for a while, and he could not be more thrilled to make an impact. Coach Worthington has high expectations for his players, though he admits his demanding nature has softened since having kids. But there is one thing he can’t quite abide.
In the most politely British way possible, Coach Worthington kindly asks that you please not call it soccer.
“I try to teach the kids to say football,” he insists, and then sighs. “I understand they are very stuck on the word soccer.” He reaches here for some diplomatic relations. “I try not to use the word either way much, if I can help it.” Which, of course, seems nearly impossible since he is a soccer—or football—coach.
When this is gently pointed out to Coach Worthington, who came to the U.S. in 2004, he demures. “I’m a U.S. citizen now, so I have to be diplomatic,” he says. “And coaching is learning to be diplomatic as well. You learn to choose your words very carefully.”
For Kelly Lemanski ’26, whom he coached for years at PDA, she is excited for the season to unfold. “He’s very technical,” she says. “I was really excited he came here because he always has good ideas.”
For Captain Brooke Hannon ’25, having great expectations is par for the course for the program. “We’ve always had high expectations for our team,” she says. “Having a new coach has heightened those expectations and made the team more excited for our season.”
Goalie Ellie Solomon ’25 puts it more bluntly. “The coach wants to win as much as we want to win.”
After 20 years of coaching, he is enjoying it all. “I love the sport,” Coach Worthington says. “I love seeing the development of the individual who couldn’t do something and now they can. You see growth very quickly as an individual and as a team.” Coach Worthington notes that he’s exactly where he should be. “I don’t think an office environment would have ever suited me,” he says simply, before adding, “I look forward to going to work every day.”
The team, which is off to a strong start, is committed to growing into a stellar program for years to come. “My end goal is to be here for a very, very long time and to build a program that is going to be successful for years to come.”
And for the players who are thrilled to train and strive toward triumph day in, day out, Coach Worthington hopes to make an impact on their high school experience and beyond. “I hope I can give them an experience where they leave Pingry with great memories, a good experience, and hopefully grow as an individual outside of the sport,” he says. “Hard work and perseverance,” he notes, “I hope they can take that into their own lives moving forward.”
And, of course, if he can quietly convince a few soccer players they are actually playing football? He’ll take that as a win, too.
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To contact the author: Sara Courtney, Communications Writer