Jill Pace won 100 games in just five seasons of play and led the Jumbos to the NCAA Tournament four times in five seasons of play. Photo by Steve LaBonte, d3photography.com

Jill Pace, who led Tufts to the NCAA Tournament four times in five seasons of play and the No. 1 ranking during the 2019-2020 season, is stepping down from her position as the Jumbos’ head coach.

The University announced that Pace had “accepted a position outside of coaching” in a release posted late Wednesday night.

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"Jill has been such a positive, dedicated, and highly respected member of our Tufts Athletics family, always willing to go the extra mile to support her fellow coaches and the department," said Director of Athletics John Morris in the release.

"We will miss Jill greatly, we thank her for all she has done for our student-athletes and Tufts, and we wish her nothing but happiness and continued success in her next chapter."

Pace was named as the Jumbos head coach in 2019-20 after Carla Berube took the same job at D1 Princeton. Berube’s departure left big shoes to fill since she led the Jumbos to 384 wins and four consecutive national semifinals in 17 seasons.

But Pace picked up where Berube left off, leading the Jumbos to a No. 1 national ranking and a 28-1 record in in her first season in Medford. Anchored by Player of the Year Erica DeCandido, the Jumbos cruised through the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament and were slated to host the second weekend when the Tournament was cancelled due to COVID-19.

After losing the entire 2020-21 season to the pandemic, Tufts returned to the NCAA Tournaments with a Sweet 16 appearance in 2022 and Elite 8 appearance in 2023. After a down year in 2023-24, Tufts bounced back and reached the NCAA Tournament last season with a 22-5 mark.

Pace leaves Tufts with a 100-34 mark in five seasons, excluding the lost 2021-22 campaign. She was named Northeast Region Coach of the Year in 2020, making her the first coach to win the award in two different regions following her winning the West Region award the previous season at Pomona-Pitzer.

Pace led a remarkable turnaround in Southern California as the Sagehens improved from 1-23 in 2016-17 to 22-6 two seasons later. She then returned to the east coast and the NESCAC where she thrived as a player at Bowdoin. Pace was first-team all-region as a senior in 2012, making her one of just seven women to receive regional Coach of the Year and first-team all-region honors as a player.

"There are so many people at Tufts – coaching colleagues, administration, student-athletes, alums, and many others – who made my time as a Jumbo rewarding, purposeful, and downright fun," said Pace in the release.

"I feel grateful for all the people who took a chance on me and supported me as I navigated my coaching path," said Pace.

Tufts is the third women’s program this offseason to change coaches after reaching the 2025 NCAA Tournament.

McMurry selected Laura Lang as its head coach after Drew Long jumped to Division I Houston Baptist while UMAC champions UW-Superior are conducting a search after Emily Carpenter moved to Knox.