Hall of Fame
Penny Kempf won national championships in both field hockey (1985) and lacrosse (1985, 1987, 1988) and was named All-America in both sports during her career. All four of Kempf’s national championship teams are inducted into the TCNJ Athletics Hall of Fame as Teams of Distinction.
With the 1985 field hockey team, Kempf scored some crucial goals in that season’s NCAA Tournament. In the national quarterfinal, Kempf scored the game’s only goal as the Lions defeated Messiah, 1-0. Two games later in the national championship against Millersville, Kempf scored the game-winning goal. In 1987, Kempf earned field hockey All-America honors.
In lacrosse, Kempf was named to the All-Tournament Team and an All-American in 1987 and 1988 as the Lions won back-to-back national championships. She was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Defensive Player for her work in each of her final two lacrosse championships.
Kempf also played on the United States national team for three years following her graduation. She was one of just four NCAA Division III players to make the 30-member team. The rest came from the NCAA Division I level.
Following a successful coaching career, Kempf was inducted into the NFHCA Hall of Fame in 2021.
