Schott Joins Soccer Staff

EUGENE, Ore. – Laura Schott, a Portland, Ore., native with an extensive resume as both a player and a coach, has joined the Oregon soccer staff, head coach Tracy Joyner announced Tuesday.

The former U.S. Women's National Team member, the all-time leading scorer at California and the all-time winningest coach at Portland State will serve as an assistant coach for the Ducks.

"What excites us most about Laura joining our team is her unique perspective as both a professional athlete and a true tactician," said Joyner, who teamed with Schott at California during their time in Berkeley. "Her background spanning college coaching, professional play, and national team experience makes her an invaluable resource for our players.

"Her analytics expertise and commitment to high performance will be instrumental in developing our program," Joyner continued. "As former teammates on the field, I'm excited to compete with Laura on this side of the touchline."

Schott has had success at every level of the game. Her amateur career began with two All-America honors and four high school state championships at Portland's Jesuit High School before going on to a record-setting career at the University of California.

"To work alongside Tracy and the rest of the coaching staff who all have an elite-level understanding of, not just the game, but also what is required to champion the women's game on a national level, checks all the boxes personally and professionally," said Schott. "I'm excited to help execute Tracy's vision for the University of Oregon women's soccer program."

Laura Schott

Schott set Cal's school records for goals scored in a career (56) and in a single season (23), and was also a finalist for the Hermann Trophy, given to the nation's top player, as a junior in 2001.

After earning four All-Pac 10 honors and two All-America awards for Cal, Schott became the Bears' first professional draft pick in 2003 when she was selected 31st overall by the Washington Freedom of the WUSA.

Schott played professionally for the Freedom in 2003 and the California Storm of the WPSL in 2004. She won a national championship with the Freedom in 2003 and led the Storm to the 2004 WPSL Championship while leading the league in scoring.

Schott made five international appearances, including four starts, as a member of the U.S. Senior Women's National Team in 2001 at the Algarve Cup. She scored a goal in the team's match against Norway during one of her five international caps. She also played for the U.S. U21 team that won the Nordic Cup, a victory that is the modern-day equivalent for winning the U20 World Cup.

After a successful career as a player, Schott transitioned to coaching when she joined the staff at Portland State as an assistant coach in 2005 and was named the program's head coach in 2008.

At Portland State, Schott was a two-time Big Sky Coach of the Year (2009, 2013) and coached her teams to four regular-season titles, including three in a row from 2011-13. She is the all-time leader in coaching wins for the Vikings and finished with a career record of 73-76-22 overall and a Big Sky mark of 44-21-11.

In 2013, Schott led the Vikings to the best season in program history, finishing the year with a 12-4-3 overall record, a Big Sky regular season title with an undefeated league record of 8-0-1, and a Big Sky Tournament championship match berth.

In her tenure as head coach with the Vikings, Schott coached 64 all-Big Sky athletes, two Big Sky offensive MVPs, two Big Sky defensive MVPs, two goalkeeper of the year winners, three Golden Boot winners, one newcomer of the year, 97 academic All-Big Sky athletes and two Big Sky Scholar-Athlete of the Year winners.

After a decade with Portland State, Schott then became one of the region's top mentors for youth soccer. She helped grow the game by training elite women and girls soccer athletes though her work with the Portland Thorns Development Academy, FC Portland, U.S. Soccer, and Formation Sports.

Schott oversaw all aspects of the Portland Thorns' Development Academy U14-U19 teams, including their college recruitment and placement program. Prior to working for the Thorns, Schott led for FC Portland as the director of girls' programming and supervised all aspects of soccer for the club, from training sessions to budgeting and staffing. She also spent four and half years with U.S. Soccer running training sessions and evaluating talent for the U.S. Soccer teams.

Schott most recently completed six seasons as the head coach at George Fox University. In her six years with George Fox, the Bruins totaled 11 all-NWC student-athletes and an additional five were named to the CSC Academic All-District teams.

In her second season, Schott led the Bruins to their best finish in 14 years, placing third in the Northwest Conference with a 10-4-2 NWC mark (12-6-2 overall). The Bruins again finished third in the conference in 2022. Schott had a 40-44-21 overall record with George Fox and a 31-39-14 mark in Northwest Conference play.

Schott graduated from Cal with a pair of bachelor's degrees in political science and mass communications in 2003. She earned a master's degree in education from Portland State in 2016 while coaching the Vikings.

Additionally, Schott is also a U.S. Soccer Federation 'A' License holder, one of the highest coaching certifications in the country and only one step removed from the USSF Pro license. She also holds the distinction of being the only person to serve as lead television analyst for both the Portland Thorns and Seattle Reign of the NWSL

Schott is a member of the UC California-Berkeley Hall of Fame and was inducted into the Oregon Historical Society's Universe of Soccer display for her impact on the game as a player, coach, administrator, and broadcaster.

University of Oregon Athletics

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