Co-Head Coaches


Jim Murphy
Office: (207) 786-6369
E-mail: jmurphy@bates.edu
Jim Murphy '69 has been the women's soccer and women's basketball coach at Bates since 1994. He has led the women's soccer team to a 121-62-10 record, three NCAA tournament appearances and a NESCAC Championship. In 12 seasons, Murphy has coached four different players into a total of five NSCAA All-America seasons. Murphy was named the 2003 NESCAC Women's Soccer Coach of the Year following the team's run to the championship final.

From 1969 to 1993, Murphy was a coach and English teacher at Masconomet Regional High School in Topsfield, Mass. He reached six Massachusetts state championship games in girls' soccer and girls' basketball, garnering four Coach of the Year awards.

"Student-athletes at Bates are challenged both in the classroom and on the playing fields in a warm, friendly environment," says Murphy. "Players on my team learn the value of working hard to achieve team and personal goals. I hope they learn that hard work can be fun and rewarding."

Carla Flaherty
Office: (207) 786-8398
E-mail: cflahert@bates.edu
Carla Flaherty '03 was named co-head women's soccer coach with Murphy prior to the 2009 season. Murphy once coached Flaherty on the Bobcat basketball team. After she graduated, Flaherty rejoined the basketball team as an assistant coach in 2004, then became assistant women's soccer coach in 2005, the year the Bobcats won the NESCAC championship. In the 2008 season, Flaherty took the reins of the women's soccer team as interim head coach while Murphy took a semester's sabbatical.

Under Flaherty's leadership, the Bobcats women's soccer team improved from 4-10 in 2007 (only Murphy's second sub-.500 season in 14 years) to 6-8 in 2008. Flaherty acknowledges that the season was a significant learning experience for her, one that should translate well for the team's future.

"Coach Murphy has, of course, all the experience, having been here for so long, while as a former female athlete, I'm able to relate to the women in a different capacity. I think it's a perfect fit," she said. "Both of us are looking to turn around the program. We both agree that you're only as good as your record says you are, and the last two years were not great. I think we're both looking forward to collaborating, putting both of our ideas together for these girls. The great thing about being co-head coaches is we can attack the same issues from two different angles -- get the same message across in two different ways."