Erin Matson, the head coach of the reigning national champion UNC field hockey team and a four-time national champion as a player, has been denied the opportunity to try out for the U.S. Olympic team at its trials in Charlotte on Monday.
Matson confirmed the news via a statement on social media Thursday night.
According to Matson’s statement, she requested a tryout in February but was denied. Previous reports from the Philadelphia Inquirer and the News & Observer indicated USA Field Hockey had deemed Matson ineligible to play and thus denied her a tryout. Her statement contradicts this.
“I met all selection criteria as outlined in the USA Field Hockey bylaws,” she said. “My request wasn’t to be an Olympian; my request was to allow me to try out. USA Field Hockey chose not to grant me that opportunity. Although it leaves my heart heavy, I have moved forward.”
USA Field Hockey published a statement in response on Friday afternoon, which you can read in full here.
“Erin Matson did not meet the qualification requirements and requested a special exception to the published Olympic Selection Process policies,” the organization said. “This came after the team qualified for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.”
The statement says Matson was invited to try out with Team USA in “early 2023,” but turned down the opportunity (Matson was hired as the UNC field hockey head coach on January 31, 2023). That tryout established the “main pool of candidates” for selection to the Olympic team. USA Field Hockey also says Matson did not play in “national or international competitions necessary to be evaluated on an ongoing basis” since that time.
“As a result, Erin did not qualify under the mandatory terms of the selection criteria that all athletes had to follow,” the statement reads.
Matson’s statement goes on to say USA Field Hockey expressed a desire to meet with her to discuss her “potential involvement” in the 2026 FIH (International Hockey Federation) World Cup and the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, but not this summer’s upcoming Games in Paris. Matson declined the invitation, saying she “felt it unfair to take time and attention away from a group in Charlotte that would be training and focusing on 2024. There is plenty of time after the Paris Games to talk… and I look forward to having that discussion.”
“I believe change in USA Field Hockey is necessary,” she said. “We should be focused on naming the strongest possible roster in order to be successful on the world stage.”
Matson completed her playing career at UNC with a national championship in 2022. After longtime head coach Karen Shelton announced her retirement that winter, Matson was hired in her place. She completed her first season in charge with another national title in 2023. As a player, she won the Honda Sport Award three times (Shelton is the only other field hockey player to win the award three times) and was named ACC Offensive Player of the Year five times. The Tar Heels won five consecutive ACC championships – in addition to their four NCAA championships – during Matson’s playing career. In 2021, the ACC Network named Matson as one of the top 10 female athletes in the league’s history.
Matson has played for the U.S. National Team since she was 17 years old. She finished as the top scorer at the 2022 Pan American Cup in Chile and most recently represented Team USA at the Indoor Pan American Cup in Canada in March. Matson scored two goals in five games to help the American women win the competition.
John Preyer, chairman of the UNC Board of Trustees, issued a statement in support of Matson on Thursday. Preyer called Team USA’s decision “beyond comprehension” and urged the organization to reconsider.
The UNC Board of Trustees released a statement in support of Erin Matson being allowed the opportunity to try out for the US Olympic Team at the trials in Charlotte on April 7. pic.twitter.com/TTQ54yXIDb
— Joe Bruno (@JoeBrunoWSOC9) April 4, 2024
“Erin Matson is the most accomplished U.S. field hockey player of all time,” Preyer’s statement read. “Why is U.S. Field Hockey denying the greatest American player in history a chance to compete for a spot on the Olympic team? Erin meets all the criteria.”
“Erin has inspired field hockey fans across generations to love and embrace this great sport,” said Board of Trustees member Jennifer Evans, who published her own statement in support of Matson. “Erin cares deeply about her sport and her teammates and wants to do everything possible to promote field hockey and help the United States win in Paris.”
Said Matson, “I appreciate the support shown for me by our UNC family and the overall field hockey community. I will be cheering loudly for the women I grew up playing with and for Team USA, who continue to make us all proud.”
Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
Comments on Chapelboro are moderated according to our Community Guidelines