Jackie Neary begins her third year at Neumann and 31st year of coaching overall in 2026-2027.
Jackie made an immediate impact in her first two seasons at the helm of the Neumann Knights. In 2025, her squad picked up ten wins in total, against a tough schedule. They were 4-1 in Atlantic East Conference play, good enough for the second seed in the postseason tournament. After defeating Marywood in the semifinals, they advanced to the Atlantic East Championship game for the first time. It was also their overall conference championship game since the 2016 season.
On May 31st of 2025, Neary served as head coach of the Division III White team at the prestigious 2025 IWLCA Senior All-Star Games, held at USA Lacrosse Headquarters in Sparks, Maryland. This national recognition is a showcase of her respected standing in the lacrosse community.
The following season, Neumann took things one step further with a historic performance. After a 9-9 overall record, battling some of the top programs in the region, the Knights went undefeated in Atlantic East play with a perfect 5-0 record. They wiped out Immaculata in the semifinals on their way to a championship game clash against Marywood. An 18-13 victory clinched the program’s first-ever conference championship and NCAA Division III National Tournament appearance.
Neary's coaching achievements before coming to Neumann University are staggering. Under her leadership, the women's lacrosse team at Cabrini University amassed an overall record of 351-158. During those same 28 years, the team's conference record was an even more incredible 241-11 (a 95.6% win rate).
Her lacrosse squads won 22 conference championships and made 21 trips to the NCAA tournament. She won 17 conference Coach of the Year honors and ranks second in wins among active Division III women's lacrosse coaches in the country. Her 2019 team won the ECAC title, defeating Drew University in the championship game.
In addition to lacrosse, Neary also coached the Cabrini field hockey team, notching a 283-251 career mark.
Neary spent three seasons (1991-94) as an assistant women’s lacrosse coach at her alma mater – Temple University. She also served 10 years (1986-95) as an assistant field hockey coach at Ridley High School, also her alma mater.
As a lacrosse player, she was a part of four Temple University teams to reach the NCAA Final Four, helping the Owls to two national championship games and winning the title with a 6-4 upset of the University of Maryland in 1984. That 1984 squad was inducted into the Temple University Athletic Hall of Fame.
She has also been inducted into the Ridley High School, Delaware County, and Cabrini University Halls of Fame. At Ridley HS, she was a first team high school All-American as a senior.
Jackie lives in New Jersey with her husband, Joe, and is the proud mother of four adult children.
