This fall, the Skyline High School Varsity Field Hockey team welcomed a new head coach, Kylee Niswonger. Niswonger coached the team all the way to regional finals with a final loss to Pioneer.
Next season, Niswonger will be taking on an assistant coaching job with the Central Michigan University Field Hockey team. The team reports they are sad to be losing her, but excited for what’s ahead.
“I’m really happy for her that she’s able to go to Central and have a really good time coaching, but I’m really sad that she’s leaving us and we only had one year with her,” says player Kate Sauld (‘29).
The team really benefited and enjoyed being coached at such a high level. “I feel really fortunate to have been able to coach with her, especially coming out of her NCAA experience with the University of Maryland field hockey team,” says Skyline Field Hockey assistant coach Andrew Nalepa.
Niswonger started her field hockey career at Dexter High School. She was then recruited to play D1 field hockey at the University of Maryland and was captain her senior year in 2024. Afterwards, she came back to Michigan and started coaching the Skyline field hockey team.
After a great season with the Skyline (10-8-1), Niswonger is now taking an assistant coaching job at Central coaching the field hockey team and will be missed.
“My time with Skyline Field Hockey was truly special,” says Coach Kylee Niswonger.
“This team showed up every day eager to learn, embracing every piece of feedback and turning it into growth and success on the field. Their commitment not only made the season unforgettable, but it also helped me realize just how deep my passion for coaching runs, ultimately leading me to my next opportunity at Central Michigan.”
The team and coaching staff are bittersweet about Niswonger taking this job. She has helped the team grow and rebuild the program, especially after losing a lot of seniors these past years, and the team is so sad to be losing her.
“It’s really sad when you lose a great young coach like Kylee,” says Skyline Varsity Field Hockey assistant coach Brian Thomas. “Kylee came in and put her fingerprint on Skyline field hockey. I’ve been with the program for the past four years, so it’s just exciting to see the new processes and the new thinking in the way that the girls came together as a family. When you lose a coach that [is] able to unify your team, it’s always a sad moment, but I’m excited for Kylee and what her future looks like at Central Michigan.”
The team is still looking for a coach for next season, but the energy and excitement remain the same. They are looking forward to what’s to come as they continue rebuilding their program.
“We have a lot of talent and leadership coming back next year,” says Nalepa. And even though we’ll be transitioning a bit in our coaching staff, I feel like our values remain the same, and our goals remain the same, and so I think we’ll just continue to build on the positive energy that we had last year.”
The team has grown significantly from having Niswonger as a coach, even from just one season. The team continues to grow and get ready for next season as they look for a new coach.
“I really liked what she brought to the team, because she really helped us together as a unit and helped us improve individually and together,” says captain Gabi Arocha (‘26). “I really enjoyed the time we had with her.”
