APPLETON (NBC 26) — She's the most decorated athlete to come out of Appleton North, and now she's back with the Lightning. After a successful professional soccer career, Sarah Hagen has returned as the head coach of the Appleton North girls' soccer team.
“I’m a very family-oriented person,” head coach Sarah Hagen said. “I’ve lived all over the world for my soccer career—overseas, throughout the U.S., and in the Midwest. Coming back to the Appleton area and being able to coach girls, you know, I walked the halls of this school a long time ago, but it’s nice to be able to give back my knowledge of the game and my love for the game. Hopefully, that helps translate into the players.”
Hagen was a three-time All-State soccer player at Appleton North. She went on to have a stellar college career at UW-Milwaukee, where she was named Horizon League Player of the Year three times.
Hagen set several records at UWM and led the Panthers to four conference titles and four trips to the NCAA Tournament. She was inducted into the Panthers' Hall of Fame in 2016.
After college, Hagen played professionally for six years. She competed both overseas and in the National Women's Soccer League, playing for the Orlando Pride, Houston Dash, and FC Kansas City. She was also a member of the U.S. Women's National Team.
Hagen retired from professional soccer in 2018.
“I grew up wanting to be a professional soccer player. I didn’t have aspirations to be a teacher, police officer, or doctor. My aspirations were to be a professional athlete. Luckily, with all the hard work I put into the game, I was able to play post-college and at the professional level. Just the mindset of trying to grow each and every single day, and hopefully that translates to the players.”
Hagen returns to her former high school after spending a year as the head coach of the De Pere girls' soccer team.
The Appleton North seniors, who have had three different head coaches in four years, were excited when they found out who would be leading the program in their final year.
“We were talking to our activities director, Mr. Kubuske, and we were like, ‘Do you know who it’s gonna be?’” Senior Maya Zulewski said. “And when we found out it was Coach Sarah, we were beyond thrilled because she knows the game really well, and we were excited for her to pass that on to us.”
Fellow senior Addison Schneider, who is committed to playing college soccer at St. Norbert, is also excited to learn from Hagen in her final year of high school soccer.
“I just saw her career and I was like, ‘Wow, she really knows the game. She plays the game. She has a lot of great knowledge.’ So I’m really looking forward to the season and to her knowledge and experience helping us grow and become better.”
While the Lightning are preparing for tryouts and the season hasn’t officially started, Hagen is eager to pass on a motto she learned in college at UW-Milwaukee.
“Bring out the best in each other,” Hagen said. “I still think about that on a daily basis, no matter if you’re on the field or in the classroom. Bring out the best in your teammates. If people need help, be there, listen—that’s really what I want to instill in the players here at North.”
Hagen said it’s great to be back at her former high school and to see some familiar faces who were around when she was a student. There’s already a lot of buzz surrounding the program, and she’s looking forward to making an impact both on and off the field.
“Obviously, we want to put a good product out on the field, but at the end of the day, it’s the value that I can bring to these players,” Hagen said.
