From the side of the soccer field, a new voice calls out drills. This season, coach Brianna Atterbury stepped into the role of Archer’s varsity soccer coach, bringing her personal experience with soccer into the program.
While attending the University of Michigan, Atterbury played for the university’s soccer team, the Michigan Wolverines. She earned the Maize & Blue Award and was a Big Ten Tournament Champion, which is one of the highest competitive levels in the country. During her time at Michigan, Atterbury said she hadn’t considered coaching. However, her teammates were the ones who ultimately ended up pushing her to try it.
“I got convinced by all my teammates at Michigan when I was playing there, they thought I would be a good coach from what they knew me as — as a person and a player personality too,” Atterbury said. “I was doubtful of my ability as a coach at first, or even that being a potential path to take, but my friends pushed me into it, and so it’s been cool to grow into that and see what I’m like in that role.”
Before coming to Archer, Atterbury worked with The Footy League in New York, where she coached at a high school. Atterbury said she worked on improving players as individuals, focusing on confidence and making soccer something enjoyable for them.
“We had this player who was struggling with confidence throughout the season, and a new position,” Atterbury said. “We were able to talk through the training and work with her confidence, and just to see her confidence grow and develop throughout the season, with her playing her best soccer at the end, and also seeing her enjoyment of that — it’s what it’s all about.”
With pressures that may come with being a coach, Atterbury said she makes a point to encourage having fun while competing. Since high school, soccer has been something Atterbury has genuinely enjoyed.
“In my teenage years, somewhere around there, a parent from the opposing team came up to me and said something along the lines of, ‘You look like you were having a lot of fun out there, and it was fun to watch,’” Atterbury said, “I think a big thing is that that passion, finding things that you’re passionate about and maybe inspiring others.”
Soccer player Jackie Mayne (‘28) said she has benefited from Atterbury’s tenacity to help players strive for the best possible version of themselves, as teammates and as individuals.
“I felt that she approached the game in a way which aligned with how the players did. She really had an intention of doing this and connecting with what the players wanted from this season, not just forcing her own mindset upon us,” Mayne said. “I really appreciated that — I thought it made for really good practices. And she was pushing us, but in a way that we understood, which let us grow more.”
The school where Atterbury previously coached in New York was also an all-girls school, which she said showed her the importance of elevating girls in what they gain out of an experience.
“I think there’s something really cool about being involved in a school that empowers, supports and uplifts young women and their dreams, not only just in the classroom, but as a person as well,” Atterbury said. “I think that’s really cool to be a part of, and so when I saw that there was a school similar to what I was used to in Manhattan, I was definitely interested.”
Athletics Director Kim Smith said Atterbury’s previous coaching experience at an all-girls school and her soccer knowledge from being a Division I athlete were all aspects of a coach that can help Archer’s soccer team succeed.
“Brianna is a new coach to Archer this year, so she’s getting to know the culture of Archer. She came from Spence on the east coach, which is very different from Archer, but also a girls’ school. We were very excited that she had that experience coaching within a girls’ school environment,” Smith said. “I love that she was a Division I soccer athlete, and she was successful in her sport. To be able to share those experiences and share the knowledge and the training that she’s received, and to pass that on to the soccer team, is amazing.”
At Archer, Atterbury said she hopes to provide a space for growth and a balance between discipline and fun.
“I think a good sign of team culture is finding balance — finding a right temperament where it’s like a tightrope walker, where you don’t want to be too intense and serious. You don’t want it to not be fun, and you’re losing some of that joy — people start to get burnt out.” Atterbury said. “But then, you don’t want it to be too loose, where there’s no discipline, and people are going off the tracks of the journey.”
Atterbury said players can utilize her teachings at Archer off the field too, since her goal is to improve players as people through soccer.
“I think playing soccer in high school and realizing how, not only is it a healthy way to stay fit and be an outlet for stress, but I think it’s taught me so much about how to be a better teammate or a co-worker,” Atterbury said. “Past high school, seeing what I could do or where I can go with it has been really fun, because it’s been cool to hop on that ride and see where it’s led me.”
