Impact Of A Scholarship: Kim Chorosiewski

Kim Chorosiewski is a member of the University of Maryland Athletics Hall of Fame for her contributions to two sports. But even she admits her illustrious career wouldn't have been possible without a scholarship. 

Chorosiewski was a field hockey and women’s lacrosse goalie at the University of Maryland from 1984-88. Among her many accomplishments, she brought the university its first NCAA national title in both sports, laying the groundwork for two of the most successful programs in collegiate athletics. 

Before achieving greatness in College Park, Chorosiewski and her family experienced tragedy. Chorosiewski’s brother passed away in her junior year of high school, a week before he was set to graduate and head off to college. A year and a day later, during her senior year, Chorosiewski lost her father. Both fell victim to battles with cancer. 

“My family, since my brother was in fourth grade, financially struggled because of so much chemotherapy,” Chorosiewski said. “He had one of the rarest forms of cancer in the world. In order for me to afford to go to college and play sports, Maryland was just a gift in that way.”

Chorosiewski was recruited to Maryland for field hockey. She was awarded a scholarship, allowing her to become the first person in her immediate family to attend college. The native of South Jersey, sharing a commonality with coaches Sue Tyler and Denise Wescott, accepted and became one of the best two-sport student-athletes in school history.  

“The scholarship was life-changing for me because if I didn't have that opportunity, I don't know what I would have done,” Chorosiewski said. “My life was in such a different place at that time. It was a gift to have it.”

Chorosiewski’s field hockey career at Maryland began with immediate success. The Terps eclipsed 100 wins as a program in 1984, and Chorosiewski captured Maryland’s single-season save mark with 181.   

However, during the season, Chorosiewski was introduced to another sport — lacrosse. She knew nothing about it and had never seen it played until she watched Dick Edell coach the men’s fall team in his first year as head coach at Maryland. She saw people hitting each other and joined the women’s team, which Tyler also coached. 

“The first time I did fall ball just for fun, I checked someone's stick, and I almost broke it,” Chorosiewski said. “The girl walked over to Sue Tyler and said, ‘Don't you ever put her on the field again.’ I had no idea who this player was. I think it was Karen Trudel, a three-time All-American at Maryland, and therefore my goalie career began pretty quickly.”

Despite playing lacrosse for the first time less than a year ago, Chorosiewski played in the 1985 NCAA women’s national championship game against New Hampshire. The Terps lost that game, but a promising future was ahead. 

Chorosiewski became the full-time starter at goalie for the women’s lacrosse team as a sophomore in 1986. She led her team back to the national championship, where they defeated Penn State 11-10. 

A year and a half later, in 1987, Chorosiewski led Maryland field hockey to an NCAA championship overtime victory against North Carolina. The Terps took down their ACC rival Tar Heels, 2-1, and Chorosiewski was named to the All-Tournament team for her performance. 

“Everyone's like, ‘Do you ever get stressed?’” Chorosiewski said. “I say, ‘I've never, ever in my lifetime gotten stressed.’ In every championship game I have played in, I faced either a last-second or last-minute shot that could have changed the game's tide. In both instances, in the lacrosse championship, I was forced to make a last-second save that, if it had scored, the game would have been tied. … [In field hockey,] we went to overtime. I had seven or eight saves in overtime.”

After beating North Carolina, The Terrapins were the first field hockey champions invited to the White House, where they met President Ronald Reagan. The win also marked Tyler's last at the Terrapin’s helm. Assistant coach Missy Meharg took over the following year. 

Chorosiewski finished her field hockey and lacrosse careers with several honors and program records, some of which still stand today. In field hockey, the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) named her an All-American in 1986.  

The goalie never missed a field hockey game and started every game for four years while recording the most saves in school and ACC history (747). She still holds the school record for career saves and the highest save percentage (.875). Furthermore, Chorosiewski ranks second in program history with 28 shutouts and fourth all-time with a 1.04 goals against average. She holds three of the top five single-season save marks, including a school-best 215 saves in 1985.

In lacrosse, Chorosiewski was named an Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) All-American Honorable Mention in 1987. She finished second in program history with 550 saves, currently holding the fourth spot. She also had a 60% save average. 

Chorosiewski accomplished this while working to maintain part of her scholarship. 

“Not only was I playing two sports at Maryland, I worked in the library because I was on a work-study Pell Grant working in concessions,” Chorosiewski said. “So when Len Bias was playing basketball, I was selling sodas and cooking hot dogs.”

Chorosiewski earned her degree from Maryland while studying journalism and public relations. She then earned her master's in education from William & Mary while partaking in an assistantship that turned into a graduate assistantship. After four years as an adjunct professor, Chorosiewski began coaching women’s lacrosse at the University of Richmond in 1998.

The former Terrapin great later served as the director of athletics at Garrison Forest School from 2001-03 and Fay School from 2005-11. She also coached women’s lacrosse for Scotland’s junior and senior national teams, including the World Cup team in 2005. Chorosiewski led Scotland to  European championship appearances in 2002 and 2004. 

In 2010, Chorosiewski returned to school to pursue her Doctor of Education from Northeastern University. Six years later, she earned her doctorate and worked in several education roles. One of those roles was with McMillan Education, where she is still employed. Currently, she’s the chair of innovation and athletic recruiting, where she helps students pre-K through post-graduate look for schools that are the right fit.

“I love seeing my experiences help other people,” Chorosiewski said. “I think coaching is teaching, and teaching is coaching.”

Chorosiewski was inducted into the Maryland Athletics Hall of Fame in 2008. She turned a scholarship to the University of Maryland into an unforgettable athletic career. Chorosiewski leveraged her success on the field and in the classroom into three degrees, allowing her to become a successful teacher and coach. Now, she can assist students and do what others did for her. 

“Anytime you have the opportunity to help a student who is currently a Terp, you never know how meaningful it will be,” Chorosiewski said. “A scholarship to me meant I could go to Maryland. … I had the luxury of being affiliated with two of the greatest teams.”