STOCKTON, Calif. – Pacific women's soccer head coach Jeff Freeman announced on Wednesday afternoon that assistant coach Joel Bancroft has been promoted to Associate Head Coach ahead of his second season with the program.

"Joel has been nothing less than extraordinary in his time here at Pacific," Freeman said. "He has been the rock of this program. He is a tremendous recruiter, coach, mentor, and may be the best I have ever worked with in terms of building relationships with the people and players in our program as well as those in the Pacific and local soccer communities. We are so fortunate to have Joel at Pacific, and I am thankful to our administration for sharing our vision, our goals, and their support in achieving those goals!"
 
In his first season with Pacific women's soccer, Bancroft helped the Tigers earn key wins over Utah State during the non-conference schedule and Santa Clara during the West Coast Conference slate in 2025.
 
"I am incredibly honored and grateful to be named Associate Head Coach of Pacific women's soccer," Bancroft said. "I want to sincerely thank Head Coach Jeff Freeman, Deputy Director of Athletics Wes Yourth, and Director of Athletics Adam Tschuor for their trust, support, and belief in me. I am equally grateful to our players, staff, alumni, and the entire Pacific community for making this program such a special place to serve. It is a privilege to work alongside an outstanding leader and coach in Jeff Freeman, as well as one of the brightest young stars in coaching, Taylor Book. Their passion, character, and commitment to our student-athletes inspire me every day. It has been an honor to serve this program, and I could not be more excited about what lies ahead. We've only just begun!"
 
Bancroft arrived at Pacific after serving as the head coach of the Saint Anselm College women's soccer team for eight years, which included seven straight winning seasons, Bancroft compiled an overall record of 54-41-29 (.552), including a 36-32-19 record (.523) in Northeast-10 Conference (NE10) play. Bancroft collected five appearances in NE10 Playoffs, three appearances in NE10 Semi-final and two appearances in NCAA Championships.
 
During his tenure at Saint Anselm, Bancroft guided the Hawks to a consistent position in the NCAA Division II East Region rankings. He also helped the program climb to as high as No. 23 in the United Soccer Coaches Division II national poll in 2023, marking the program's highest national ranking since 1997 and its first ranking overall since 1998. Bancroft coached 30 student-athletes to NE10 All-Conference recognition while at Saint Anselm.

Bancroft's coaching background also includes stops at UMass Lowell where he was a head coach for three seasons (2014-2016), and at Penn State where he was an assistant coach from 2012 to 2013.

Bancroft took over the head coaching duties at UML in 2014, inheriting a 1-16-1 record. With a focus on the development of athletic skills of previous Division II athletes, and the addition of new high impact recruits, Bancroft led the River Hawks to an America East playoff berth in 2016, one year before the program was NCAA-eligible after its 2013 transition from Division II to Division I.
 
A Dover, New Hampshire native, Bancroft graduated from the University of Southern Maine with a Criminology degree in 2011 and earned his master's degree in Exercise Science & Coaching this past spring.
 
Bancroft and the Tigers look ahead to opening day of the 2026 season, which will take place on Thursday, Aug. 13 at Sacramento State. Pacific will host its home opener on Thursday, Aug. 20 against Nevada at Knoles Field.
 
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