COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – Ursinus College mourns the loss of Vonnie Gros '57, who passed away at the age of 90 on February 28th.
 
 
Gros was an All-American in both field hockey and lacrosse, and a national champion as a player and coach. Gros came to Ursinus College in the mid-1950s, she embarked on one of the school's most celebrated athletic careers. She was the school's first All-American in field hockey and lacrosse in 1957, and a national champion as a player and coach.
 
 
She played on the U.S. National Field Hockey Team for 13 years and then coached that team to its only Olympic medal in 1984. Gros was initially selected to coach the team in the 1980 Summer Olympics before the United States decided to boycott the games in Moscow. Fortunately, Gros would receive a second chance when she was asked to return to coach the 1984 Olympic team.
 
 
Despite being heavy underdogs, she led the U.S. to a bronze medal in 1984, a breakthrough accomplishment for the country in that sport. Gros enjoyed a storied coaching career at West Chester University, Princeton University and Ursinus College. She is enshrined in at least 8 Halls of Fame, including U.S. Field Hockey Hall of Fame, the Ursinus College Hall of Fame for Athletes, the West Chester University Athletics Hall of Fame, the Montgomery County Coaches Hall of Fame, the Chester County Sports Hall of Fame, the National Field Hockey Coaches Association Hall of Fame, the Eastern PA chapter of the US Lacrosse Hall of Fame, and the Philadelphia.