UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Former Penn State standout and State College native Amanda Dinunzio has been named an assistant coach for the Penn State field hockey team. Dinunzio rounds out new head coach Lisa Bervinchak Love's staff as the third assistant coach. She played at Penn State from 2011-14.
Dinunzio served as a volunteer assistant for Penn State during the 2018 and 2019 seasons after retiring from international play. She competed for Penn State from the 2011-12 academic year through the 2014-15 campaign and was part of two Big Ten regular season championship squads and two Big Ten Tournament champions.
She was a four-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree (2012-2015), a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar (2012-2015) and a four-time member of the NFHCA National All-Academic Team (2011-2014). Dinunzio lettered all four years at Penn State and played in nearly 60 games, starting over 20.
Dinunzio comes back to Happy Valley after spending the last few years in Las Vegas where she served as a performance coach at Elevate Sport Performance and Healthcare and as a Raiders Ambassador for the National Football League's Las Vegas Raiders. Prior to her move to Las Vegas, she served as the volunteer assistant at Penn State as well as working as the Field Hockey Director at Nittany Valley Sports Centre.
A State College native who played at State College High School, Dinunzio joined the U.S. National Team in 2016 and retired from international play in 2018 with 11 international caps. She also played for HC Rotterdam Dames First Team in The Netherlands. Dinunzio graduated from Penn State in 2015 with a bachelor's degree in Spanish and a 3.84 grade point average. She is currently working towards her athletic development specialist certificate at the University of Florida.
"I am thrilled to welcome Amanda back to Penn State and our coaching staff," said Bervinchak Love. "She will bring a lot of experience and knowledge of the game to our team and will have a positive impact right from the start. Her energy and passion for the game and Penn State are contagious and the team is going to love her."
Bervinchak Love was elevated to head coach earlier this year when Morett-Curtiss announced her retirement. Laura Gebhart, Bervinchak Love's coaching colleague under Morett-Curtiss, was promoted to associate head coach and former Lion All-American Ayla Halus-Johnson joined the staff as an assistant coach in July.
Penn State is coming off a superb 2022 season. The team advanced to the national semifinals and won a share of the 2022 Big Ten Championship. The Nittany Lions finished the stellar campaign with a 17-4 record.
Fans are encouraged to follow the Nittany Lion field hockey team online at www.GoPSUsports.com (click teams, click field hockey), on twitter @pennstateFH and on facebook at www.facebook.com/pennstatefieldhockey.