Coaching Philosophy
We seek to always emphasize the joy of this beautiful game while connecting to and valuing each individual player.
Eastlake’s system may require players to adapt to a new position or be flexible in how they play their current position, in order to support the team. A competitive, supportive, and accountable winning team culture is our ultimate goal. As players advance to higher level teams within our program, technical expectations of teammates and coaches also rise. Playing time is variable based on what the teams need (see “Playing Time” below).
Each player needs to contribute their strengths to the team as a whole. Our goal is to use sport to educate and prepare young women for life. The lessons that players learn from competitive team sports provide a monumental positive impact on their ability to lead confident, successful lives. Those lessons include learning they can do hard things, emphasizing team over self, respectfully self-advocating, adapting to new environments, supporting others that are part of your team even though they may not be in your friend group, among many others. Part of our job as coaches is to help players navigate this process. Above all else, we care about and love our players through the ups and downs of this sport.
Coaching Staff
-
Head Varsity Coach
Molly is headed into her 7th year as the Varsity Head Coach. In her time, the Wolves made it to the state tournament for the first time in 10 years finishing in the round of 16 in 2019 and 2022 and Elite 8 in 2021. Previously, she served as Head Coach of the Junior Varsity and assisted Varsity making this her 10th year in the program.
Molly was a captain of the 2007 Eastlake State Championship team and continued on to play two years at Boise State University, helping the team win the program’s first WAC Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance. She continued her schooling at Washington State University, earning her degree in education. She currently teaches Leadership at Eastlake.
-
Assistant Varsity Coach
Zach is in his 10th year as a EHS Assistant Coach. He has been with Eastlake since Fall 2015.
Zach attended Lake Washington HS, and Humboldt State University. In both high school and college, Zach was voted runner-up for conference player of the year in his senior season. He was also entered into the 2014 MLS SuperDraft, one of 250+ players pooled from every college and university in the country, along with a select group of international players. Zach has a strong understanding of the game at a high level and is a huge asset to the program.
-
JV Head Coach
We are excited to welcome Coach Costa back into the program. Previous he served as the c-team coach in the 2023 season. After a move to California, he is back to serve as the JV head coach. Coach Costa also coaches the boys in the Spring.
Coach Costa graduated from Whitworth where he earned First Team All-Northwest Conference as a goalie. He also teaches math at Eastlake. Coach Costa’s knowledge of the game at a collegiate level, and ability to support our keepers, makes him a perfect addition to the staff.
-
JV Assistant Coach
This will be Coach Tully’s first year with JV after spending the last two seasons with varsity. He is the head coach for Girls Flag Football in the Winter, and previously was the Defensive Coordinator for the EHS football team. Coach Tully has such great sports awareness, incredible coaching experience, and is a tremendous coach for our female athletes.
Coach Tully played Defensive Back for Whitworth and coached as a grad assistant. He teaches PE and Wellness at Eastlake.
-
C-Team Coach
We are thrilled to be welcoming back Kara Popp to the c-team role. Kara previous coached the c-team for years before taking a few years off to watch her kids who were off playing at the college level. Kara has a wonderful way of meeting girls where they are at and being their ultimate supporter and cheerleader through the season.