Kelsie McDowell - Assistant Women's Rugby Coach - Women's Rugby Coaches

Kelsie McDowell

Title:
Assistant Women's Rugby Coach
Email:
kelsie.mcdowell@westpoint.edu

Kelsie McDowell joined the women’s rugby staff as assistant coach in August 2023.

McDowell comes to West Point following a five-year stint as the women’s rugby head coach at Iowa State University. The Cyclones saw a quick turnaround under McDowell, qualifying for the 15s National Championship Tournament three times (2018, 2021-22) and the 7s National Championships on four occasions (2019, 21-23), with the 7s qualification being the first in program history.

During her time in Ames, the Cyclones saw 5 NCR All-Americans and 10+ Collegiate Scholastic All-Americans while McDowell recruited and developed five new IAYRA high school girls coaches.

Prior to Iowa State, McDowell served as head coach of the inaugural women’s rugby team at Simpson College beginning in 2014, as the team qualified for nationals in its first year as a collegiate program. Across her five-year stint, McDowell was responsible for all aspects of developing and running the program which eventually saw itself finish in the top-five at the NSCRO National Championships from 2015-2019.

McDowell also serves as the head coach of the Eagle Impact Rugby Academy, after beginning as an assistant coach for the U18 squad which held its first ever overseas tour to Ireland with McDowell in 2021. She went on to be the co-head coach of the U16 program, culminating in a 2023 U16 National 7s Championship.

McDowell also served as the Head Coach of the Iowa Hawkettes, a high performance youth rugby club from 2015-2023, where she developed the first ever Iowa High School Girl’s All-Star program. As the leader of the program, she was able to mentor young athletes while building a culture with emphasis on personal growth through sport for young women. The team saw great success including four Midwest Championships (2016-19) while being the 2017 National High School Invitational Champions.

She also served as head coach of the Iowa Collegiate LAU Select Side beginning in 2016, being responsible for all aspects of the running the representative level program. The team has had sustained success as LAU Champions in 2021 along with a pair of runner-up finishes (2017, 2022).

McDowell served as the head coach of the Southeast Polk High School team from 2012-2017, winning two state championships while landing as runner-up on three occassions. At the time, her roster of over 20 student-athletes was consistently the highest total in the state of Iowa.

With her contributions to the sport glaring, McDowell was a US Women’s Rugby Foundation ‘15 Under 30’ Award Recipient in its inaugural year in 2020.

She serves as an Iowa Rugby Union Compliance Officer, tracking disciplinary issues for collegiate and senior sides in the state along with collaborating with the Midwest Union to set safety standards in the sport. McDowell is also an Iowa Rugby Hall of Fame Chair Woman, as she helped establish the board member selection process while streamlining the voting process and building analytics spectrums for different nominations.

McDowell was an integral part of the growth of the sport in young girls in Iowa, serving as the Iowa Youth Rugby Girls Development Director from 2014-2018. In her role, she monitored all aspects of registration and compliance while recruiting coaches and volunteers for the development of new teams. Beginning with three teams and 21 girls, the league grew to 14 teams with over 100 players by her fourth year.

Prior to her coaching career, McDowell was a standout rugby athlete at the University of Northern Iowa, earning her bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Government in 2012.