Coach Emily Walling Earns College Hall of Fame Honors

Tiffin University in Ohio honored SSES coach for outstanding NCAA lacrosse career

St. Stephen’s Girls Lacrosse coach Emily Walling recently joined the Hall of Fame of her alma mater, Tiffin University. Walling’s stellar career with the Tiffin Dragons women’s lacrosse program included 282 goals and 348 points, among the best in NCAA Division II history. She led the nation in goals and was named an IWLCA second team All-American in 2016, twice earned the Attacker of the Year award for her conference and was an IWLCA All-Region player and all-conference player multiple years. 

In September, Walling (née Roussel) returned to Tiffin’s campus in Ohio for the Hall of Fame ceremony and watched the women’s team practice the following day. “It brought back all the good memories,” Walling said of the celebratory weekend. With typical humbleness, she added that the current Tiffin team was “definitely better and more skilled” than the team she captained for three years as a student-athlete. Nevertheless, her Hall of Fame award names Walling “one of the greatest players in Tiffin University women’s lacrosse history … and near the top of the Tiffin record book.”

Watch Coach Walling’s past and present Spartan players congratulate her on this incredible honor.

Walling was barely familiar with the sport before joining her high school’s new girls lacrosse program as a sophomore in Georgetown, Texas. Even so, she became a two-time all-state honoree and twice helped her team qualify for state championships. In Walling’s senior year, her coach convinced her that she could play lacrosse at the collegiate level and she was soon recruited by Tiffin.

“Playing lacrosse really gave me the opportunity to go to college out of state,” said Walling. While she excelled as a midfielder in high school, switching to attacker proved an even more successful position for Walling. Pursuing a degree in marketing helped her develop public speaking and leadership skills she used as captain of her college team. 

She later went to graduate school for leadership but was increasingly interested in coaching lacrosse. “My high school coach was awesome, she gave me a really good experience,” said Walling. “I love this sport, I love playing lacrosse and I want to create that experience for other people, too.” 

Since joining St. Stephen’s in 2019, Walling has fueled tremendous growth in the girls lacrosse program, and she  also serves as the school’s transportation coordinator. “My first year coaching here, I had 13 people on my team,” said Walling. Last academic year, there were nearly 50 girls lacrosse players on Upper School teams alone. 

“We're creating an environment that's fun, and we make the most of the situations we're given,” she said of the approach she and her Spartan Athletics colleagues bring to girls lacrosse. 

Not only has Walling’s upbeat attitude and love of the game increased its popularity on The Hill, but she has also inspired impressive achievements on the field.

“Last spring, Coach Emily helped lead the varsity girls lacrosse program to the Division II Texas Girls High School State Lacrosse League Championship,” said Athletic Director Jon McCain. “Her positive demeanor is reflected in the joy her players display on the field."

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