Roberts Wesleyan College Women's Field Hockey

Marissa Kocher was hired as Roberts Wesleyan University’s first field hockey coach in March of 2023 and enters her third season at the helm in 2025. The Field Hockey program is playing its final season as an independent team in 2025 and will join the East Coast Conference in 2026. She currently serves as a member of the NCAA Division II Field Hockey committee. In the first season of varsity competition, the team won its first varsity game September 19, 2023 with a 3-1 win at Wells. Six players earned spots on the NFHCA Division II National Academic Squad and freshman goalie Avery Richardson led the nation in saves per game. She finished the season with 16.33 saves per game in 12 contests. In 2024, the team added two more victories to its win total and had 10 players honored for academic excellence including Katie Krawczyk who earned CSC Academic All-District honors. Kocher graduated from Houghton with a degree in Communications in 2014 and spent two seasons as an assistant coach with the Highlanders before moving on to SUNY Geneseo. She was hired as an assistant coach at Geneseo in 2018 and spent five seasons with the Knights, including the 2019 campaign when Geneseo compiled a 19-3 record, won the SUNYAC championship and qualified for the NCAA Division III Tournament. She was a member of the 2019 and 2022 SUNYAC Coaching Staff of the Year and Geneseo. The staff was also recognized as the 2019 Spiideo/NFHCA Division III North Atlantic Regional Coaching Staff of the Year. Kocher also serves as a coach for the RNY Field Hockey club team and continues to play field hockey in an adult league. Kocher has her USA Field Hockey Level II Coach Certification and her Beginner and Junior Umpire certification. Kocher signed up for her first rec league team in fifth grade and continued her playing career at South Carroll High School in Sykesville, Md., and Houghton University. In her spare time, Kocher enjoys cooking and exploring Rochester with her husband, Jake, and dog, Linus.

Paul Fricano was named the first head coach of Women’s Flag Football at Roberts Wesleyan University in 2025. The team begins play in Fall 2025 with its first games schedule set for Spring 2026. A Rochester native and 2014 graduate of Churchville-Chili High School, Fricano earned All-Country and All-State honors as a football player before continuing his athletic and academic career at Eastern Michigan University. He currently serves as a Resident Director on the North Campus of Roberts Wesleyan, where he plays a key role to support and strengthen the campus community. “I have a deep passion for the game,” said Fricano. “I’m excited to lead the development of a championship-level flag football program at Roberts Wesleyan. My goal is to build a team culture rooted in excellence, unity, and the core values of our university—where athletes play with purpose, integrity, and for each other.” Fricano had a pair of stellar seasons at Eastern Michigan as the starting kicker for the Eagles. He connected on 34 field goals and was nearly perfect hitting 76-of-79 extra point attempts. He helped the team to the Popeye’s Bahamas Bowl in 2016. Despite the 24-20 loss, Fricano set a pair of Bahamas Bowl records for field goals attempted (2-for-2) and made in the bowl game. He is listed in the Eastern Michigan record books at No. 7 for career points scored (178) and No. 2 (99) and No. 10 (79) for points in a season. He earned All-MAC honors in 2016 and was a District Scholar-Athlete in both 2016 and 2017.