The 'From The Heart' feature series takes an in-depth look at St. Bonaventure student-athletes, coaches and staff. Named for the beloved Merton's Heart that overlooks campus, this series will tell the stories of Bonnies athletic programs on and off the field. Click here for previous features in the series.

Sarah Wolcott's career path has taken several unexpected turns. From aspiring environmental attorney to becoming an accomplished collegiate soccer coach, all steps led her to return home.

After 11 years away from St. Bonaventure Wolcott, the senior associate athletic director for compliance and academic services, returned to her alma mater in 2021 as an assistant director of academics. 

Today, Wolcott spends her day ensuring St. Bonaventure Athletics and its athletes follow NCAA rules with academics, eligibility, and transfer requirements.

Wolcott, a 2010 graduate of Bonaventure, played four years on the Bonnies women's soccer team and earned a degree in philosophy and pre-law. Wolcott initially didn't dream of working in athletics, but wanted to become an environmental attorney.

"Throughout my tenure in Bona's I thought I was going to be an environmental attorney," Wolcott said. "I was set to go to Vermont for law school, and I had a crisis after my internship, and I was like, I can't do this."  

Wolcott spent three years as an assistant coach at nearby University of Pittsburgh at Bradford before serving as head coach for Cedar Crest, a Division III school in Allentown, Pa., for nearly eight years. In that span, Wolcott earned conference Coach of the Year accolades twice and coached 23 all-conference players. 

During Wolcott's time playing and coaching, she said she learned the value of working hard.

"Sports teach you how to be resilient and to have a good work ethic," Wolcott said. "I tried to instill that in my players, and that's what I do in my day-to-day. I just try to get things done, and I feel I got a work ethic out of it."     

Coaching wasn't the only area where Wolcott made an impact. During her time at Cedar Crest, she also served as a compliance director and main liaison between academics and athletics. In that time, the number of student-athletes' named to All-Academic Teams increased from 48 percent to 73 percent.

Wolcott credits consistency for athletes' academic success.

"Consistency is important for kids, especially when it comes to accountability," Wolcott said. "It's the same athletically and academically when we are talking about consistency. We took a pretty serious focus on all of our athletes and what they were supposed to be doing in the classroom. It was a really high-achieving school, and consistency helped."

In the fall of 2021, St. Bonaventure had an assistant director of academics position become available. Wolcott, who grew up and went to high school in Olean, wanted to move closer to home and family. 

 

St. Bonaventure hired Wolcott in the fall, but that meant she would have to leave the coaching ranks.    

"The timing of the job was not ideal," Wolcott said. "The assistant director of academics position came open in the fall, and that is when soccer season is. I told the person hiring me that I wasn't going to leave two games into our soccer season, but we worked something out where I got through our non-conference schedule and left midseason. The timing was not ideal, but the position and posting felt ideal."     

Wolcott oversees compliance and academics for Bonaventure athletes, but her job responsibilities can shift by the day.             

"It's organized chaos every single day and my job depends on the day," Wolcott said. "There's a lot of stuff that happens behind the scenes in terms of tracking eligibility for incoming freshman student-athletes, tracking what the transfer requirements are, and maintaining eligibility. We try to meet regularly as an academic staff, and we just try to have a pulse on where everyone's academic standings are."

Wolcott added that she also helps coaches with NCAA rules and interpretations.

"From a compliance side of things, staying in tune to all of the [rules] is obviously important. I am here for coaches for rules and interpretations and to help them figure it out."      

For Wolcott to return to Bonaventure, it isn't just a job, but a full-circle moment.

"It's awesome," Wolcott said. "It feels like coming home. It feels like Bonaventure has a boomerang effect on people. It always feels like alums find their way back here. It's great to be back."