With 10 seconds left on the clock, Hope Clark’s rising Daytona State women’s soccer program in the region semifinal game, in the fall of 2022, was beating the reigning national champions of the NJCAA, Eastern Florida, one to zero.
In the last four seconds of the game, sophomore player Shania Harris received a stellar ball, chipping the goalkeeper and scoring with one second left on the clock to solidify the game with a two-to-zero win. All Clark could do was think, “It’s about damn time,” as the team sprinted on the field in a victorious style, embracing each other as the crowd went wild.
Clark stood in disbelief, with eyes wider than ever seen before, having experienced one of the many highlights of her coaching career. The win enabled her to start “breaking glass celling’s for this program,” she said. “[We are] heading in the right direction, and the sky is the limit.”
The forty-six-year-old mountain of a woman never had it easy, always crawling to the top. Throughout her journey, she has experienced different career positions and faced many challenges. Different aspects of her life have shaped who she is today, and she aims to instill the values and philosophies she has abided by into other young women in her life.
Clark graduated from American University with a Master of Science in Health and Fitness Management, while also serving as the assistant coach of the women’s program. She also graduated from Virginia Tech with a Bachelor of Science in Human Foods and Exercise, having transferred from San Francisco University, where she started her master’s program, only to find that it wasn’t the right fit for her.
“The goal was to always run my own health club.” Clark states, “I was a bit of a gym rat as well.” With health and fitness being her main priorities, she thought there was no other reason as to why she shouldn’t pursue this. She moved, knowing that California was more of her vibe, and she was “done” with soccer, feeling burnt out.
She ended up with a job as assistant general manager at a health food club and started her master’s program. She continued to rise up the ranks and put a hold on her masters and focused on working. She, however, found herself missing home, her friends, and ultimately soccer.
Virginia Tech University was a very influential part of Clark’s life and shaped her coaching philosophy. Her junior year of high school she committed to play there as a goalkeeper and was also the first recruiting class at Virginia Tech.
She faced some very tough challenges. When she verbally committed to play at the University of Maryland, after having turned down Virginia Tech and North Carolina State University, Maryland didn’t pull through. “it was a pretty traumatic time,” Clark said. Luckily, the offer at Virginia Tech was still good.
The experience helped shape how she coaches, encouraging her to be open and honest in the recruitment process and as a coach. She notes it was the best thing that ever happened to her, influencing her coaching and meeting her best friends for life.
Clark grew up in Louisiana, the youngest of four. Her parents were hardworking and did what they could to support her. After school, she had a 2-hour commute to soccer, and she participated in other sports. She always “[had] dinner sitting in the microwave” when she would get home. She considered herself a good kid who would “choose spending Friday night eating dinner with her family rather than going out with her friends.” Eventually, she ended up at a D1 women’s soccer program.
Now, as head coach of the women’s soccer program at Daytona State, she feels accomplished for having found a place where she and her family are happy.
Despite her successes on the field and as a coach, her main passion is not soccer, it is cooking. “When I wake up in the mornings, I’m not thinking about soccer,” she said. “I’m thinking about what I am going to cook.”
Coach Clark has a few accomplishments that she is proud of, including how she has raised her daughter Zion as well as getting her family to a place in life where they are happy and having an impact on young women’s journeys.
“It’s more of the small things rather than the big,” she said.
Skyler Comstock
Contributor