Carolyn Carrera - Women's Lacrosse
- Title:
- Assistant Coach
- Email:
- carrera@uoregon.edu
In 2026, Carrera helped guide the Ducks to a strong start in their second season competing in the Big Ten Conference, winning six of their first eight games, including three straight to open the season. Overseeing Oregon's defensive unit, Carrera helped the Ducks total 142 caused turnovers and hold five opponents to 10 goals or fewer, including a 15-1 victory over Kent State and a 20-3 win against Delaware State. Carrera helped develop senior midfielder Anna Simmons, who led the Ducks with 23 caused turnovers and 27 ground balls while earning the program's first All-Big Ten selection. Simmons concluded her Oregon career ranked fifth in program history with 66 caused turnovers, while her 23 in 2026 tied for 10th on the program's single-season list. Carrera also worked closely with junior midfielder/defender Lexi Jenkins, who went on to represent Team Canada as a defender at the 2026 World Lacrosse Women's Championship in Tokyo, Japan. Jenkins appeared in every game on the defensive side of the ball, helping Canada capture a silver medal.
Carrera also competed on the international stage in 2026, captaining the Philippines at the World Lacrosse Women's Championship and helping lead the nation to its first-ever tournament victory and a 10th-place finish in its championship debut. Carrera recorded seven caused turnovers and 10 ground balls throughout the tournament after helping the Philippines secure its first-ever berth in the 2026 World Championship.
Carrera helped steer the Ducks’ to their second consecutive winning record at home during her second season with the program in 2025 as Oregon made its transition to the Big Ten Conference. She helped as Rachel Pallo made the transition to defense, where she caused a career-high 14 turnovers and won 91 draw controls, the second-most by a Duck in a single season in program history. Carrera oversaw a defense that held six opponents to ten goals or fewer and caused 12 or more turnovers 12 times.Before the start of the 2025 season, Carrera represented the Philippines at the Asia-Pacific Women’s Lacrosse Championship. She helped lead the Philippines to a pair of pool play wins before defeating Chinese Tapei to win the gold medal and clinch the nation’s first first-ever berth in the World Lacrosse Women’s Championship.
In her first season as an assistant coach, Carrera helped guide the Ducks their first winning season since 2017 and a program record seven home victories. With her expertise on the defensive side of the ball, Carrera guided UO on its way to holding eight opponents under 10 goals throughout the season after doing so just three times across the previous three seasons combined. On the season the Ducks surrendered just 11.67 goals per game, the best mark since the 2016 season.
Carrera joined the Ducks after an impressive playing career at Vermont where she played for the Catamounts from 2019-23 under Drummond. Carrera racked up a number of conference accolades including American East Defender of the Year (2023) and two all-conference first team nods (2022, 2023). The Catamount captain was named an all-America honorable mention by the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) as a senior in 2022 after ranking second in the nation in caused turnovers per game (2.89) and third in ground balls per game (3.28).
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Carrera finished her Vermont career with a program-record 154 caused turnovers, setting both school and conference marks for caused turnovers in a season with 58 in 2023. The Harriman, N.Y., native led the nation in caused turnovers per game (3.63) in her final season, earning IWLCA All-Northeast First Team honors for the second-consecutive year.
