Lia Petersen begins her 15th season as a member of the Gannon coaching staff in 2023, forming a family bond in the women’s soccer program. Lia is the wife of head coach Colin Petersen. The Knights have won 153 matches and qualified for the postseason eight times during her 14 years on the coaching staff. The postseason appearances include six trips to the NCAA Tournament.

The last two years have seen the Golden Knights qualify for the NCAA Tournament, finishing at 15-4-4 a year ago while reaching the PSAC Championship game for the first time. Gannon defeated Fairmont State 3-0 in the first round of the Atlantic Regional before losing to Kutztown 1-0 in the second round. The 15 wins were the second-highest total in team history.

The 2021 squad reached the PSAC Tournament semifinals before dropping a hard-fought 2-1 contest in overtime to Bloomsburg in the first round of the Atlantic Regional. Gannon ended the year at 12-4-3.

Colin Peterson was named the PSAC West Coach of the Year the last two years. Four Golden Knights earned All-PSAC West honors in 2022, with Sarah Fails the first Gannon player to earn All-American honors since 2015. She was accorded United Soccer Coaches Third Team honors. In 2021 five Golden Knights earned All-PSAC West accolades, with Taylor Lewis becoming a rare four-time All-PSAC honoree.

In 2019, Petersen helped the Knights achieve an 8-7-2 overall record and a 7-7-2 finish in PSAC play. The Knights went 2-1-1 vs. cross-county foes Mercyhurst and Edinboro. The Knights won both meetings vs. the Lakers and Fighting Scots at McConnell Family Stadium.

Petersen helped coach one All-Conference selection and two players who earned Athlete of the Week and Defensive Athlete of the Week honors in 2019.

In 2018, the team posted a 9-6-2 overall record with an 8-6-2 finish in PSAC play just narrowly missing out on the PSAC Tournament. Petersen helped the Gannon women’s soccer program advance to the PSAC semifinals for the third consecutive season and fourth time in the last five years in 2017.

Two years earlier, she helped the Knights reach the program’s apex with arguably its best season in school history. The Knights went 17-1-0 during the regular season to capture the top seed in the PSAC Tournament before finishing at 18-3-0 overall. The program became the third PSAC squad to win 17 matches in a row, ascending to the No. 1 position in four consecutive National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Top 25 Polls. It represented the first No. 1 ranking in program history.

Gannon spent two weeks as the only team at any level of the NCAA without a loss or tie before falling at East Stroudsburg in the regular-season finale. The Knights shattered the school record for victories, surpassing the previous record set by the 2012 team that finished 13-4-2. Gannon hosted the PSAC Final Four and first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament for the first time ever.

Petersen came to the collegiate level after serving as the girl’s soccer coach at Fairview (Pa.) High School  for 11 seasons (1997-08). The Tigers won ten Region 2 titles and nine District 10 championships under Petersen. In addition, the program made three Western Final appearances.

Petersen starred on the soccer field during her collegiate playing days at Gannon. The former goalkeeper ranks 13th all-time at Gannon with 119 career saves, accounting for all 119 stops during the 1994 campaign. It marked the third-highest single-season total in school history.

Petersen received her bachelor of science degree in Therapeutic Recreation from Gannon in 1996. She graduated with a 3.86 grade point average and was a member of the Dean’s List throughout her collegiate career. Lia and Colin have four children, three who will be attending Gannon this year. Maddie is a senior and a member of the Gannon cross country team, while Charlie and Owen also attend Gannon and are members of the men’s soccer team. Charlie is a junior and Owen a freshman. Lincoln is their youngest child at the age of seven.