Women's Lacrosse

Ashley 'AJ' Johnson Named Head Coach of Colorado College Women's Lacrosse

**Release courtesy of Colorado College Sports information

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.--Current four-year women's lacrosse assistant coach, Ashley Johnson, has been named the second head coach in Colorado College women's lacrosse history, Vice President and Director of Athletics Lesley Irvine announced Monday, June 2.

Johnson has spent the last four seasons as the top assistant under Susan "Stuey" Stuart, who retired at the end of the 2025 season after 31 years as the program's only head coach.
 
"Women's Lacrosse has an incredible history of success here at Colorado College and has established itself as one of the best in the nation," Irvine said. "AJ has been a huge part of that momentum during her recent time here and is absolutely ready for this opportunity. I look forward to honoring the legacy that Stuey helped build while working with AJ to leverage the foundation to continue to chase championships."
 
Originally from Arvada, Colo., Johnson has over 15 years of coaching experience at the DIII, DI, and national team levels. In her four seasons as the assistant coach at CC, the Tigers compiled a 51-28 record, culminating in back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances, including a trip to the Sweet 16 in 2024.
 
"Passing the torch to AJ makes me so excited for her and the lacrosse program," Stuart said. "She is an exceptional coach who has elevated the program since she arrived because of her attention to detail in all aspects of the job. Her understanding of life on the block plan and how to recruit student-athletes who will thrive in the high-energy environment of Colorado College will make the transition seamless for our incoming class and our current players."
 
CC has gone 34-19 in the last two years and won consecutive Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference titles. In 2025, the Tigers tied a program record for wins in a season with an 18-4 record and Johnson and Stuart were named the WIAC Coaching Staff of the Year.
 
"I want to express my heartfelt thanks to Stuey," Johnson said. "Her leadership, friendship and belief in me as an assistant coach have helped prepare me for this next step. Her dedication to this program is a prominent foundation, with over 30 years of tradition, and that is something to cherish. I know I am stepping into something special, and I don't take that lightly. I look forward to elevating and empowering our current student-athletes and leading this team into its next great chapter."
 
Johnson has helped produce three All-Americans, 28 all-region selections and 25 all-conference honorees. CC has had eight players win major conference awards between the SCAC and WIAC.
 
"I want to also sincerely thank Lesley Irvine for her support and trust in my vision for the future of CC women's lacrosse," Johnson said. "I'm honored to lead Colorado College as the next head coach. This transition is exciting, and I deeply value our shared vision for excellence and support of our student-athletes on and off the field."
 
Before Colorado College, Johnson spent six seasons at the University of California-Davis, where she served as the top assistant since the fall of 2015. While at Davis, Johnson was the offensive coordinator, draw specialist and goaltender coach, as well as the program's recruiting coordinator.
 
In 2021, she helped guide the Aggies to the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation championship as well as their third consecutive No. 1 seed for the MPSF Tournament. She helped lead UC Davis to a 12-4 record, the program's best since 2004, and coached the league's player of the year as well as seven first-team all-MPSF selections.
 
Prior to Davis, Johnson served two seasons as the assistant at Marist College (2013-15) and three at Wagner College (2010-13), where she began her coaching career as a graduate assistant and was quickly promoted to first assistant.
 
Johnson has coached at the national team level most recently with Team Mexico in the 2024 U20 Women's Lacrosse Championship in Hong Kong. She was also the assistant coach of the Ugandan National Team in 2020.
 
She played DI lacrosse at Mount St. Mary's University, where she was named a first-team All-NEC selection as an attacker in 2010 and a midfielder in 2008.
 
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