Jan Hathorn Inducted into Inaugural Class of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Hall of Fame

By Brian Laubscher
September 11, 2025

Jan Hathorn, Michael F. Walsh Director of Athletics at Washington and Lee University, was one of 50 individuals selected for the Old Dominion Athletic Conference's (ODAC) inaugural hall of fame class honoring the league's 50th year of operation.

Former athletes, coaches and administrators from 13 current and former ODAC member schools, as well as the ODAC itself, were among the honorees inducted in the initial class. From W&L, Hathorn was joined by former director of athletics and head football coach Bill McHenry '54, former assistant director of athletics and head women's tennis coach Cinda Rankin and former director of athletics Mike Walsh.

Hathorn first arrived at W&L in 1987 to serve as the school's first head coach for both the women's soccer and women's lacrosse programs. She coached the women's soccer team for 14 seasons, producing 10 winning seasons and a 128-89-9 (.586) overall record. In women's lacrosse, she coached the Generals for 19 seasons and tallied a 222-93 (.705) record with nine ODAC Championships.

Now in her 19th year as the director of athletics, Hathorn has led the W&L athletics program to the Dan Wooldridge Champions Cup as the top overall athletic program in the ODAC every year. Under her leadership, the Generals have won more than 60% of their contests, have captured 151 conference team championships and consistently ranked among the top athletic departments in Division III. During the 2024-25 school year, W&L placed 13th in the Division III LEARFIELD Directors' Cup, which measures the top colleges and universities in the nation based on their finishes in NCAA Championship competition.

Hathorn was selected as the 2019 NCAA Division III Administrator of the Year by Women Leaders in College Sports, and, in 2010, she received the Diane Geppi-Aikens Memorial Award for lifetime achievement in lacrosse. In addition to the ODAC Hall of Fame, Hathorn is a member of the Marcus Whitman High School Hall of Fame, the SUNY Cortland C-Club Hall of Fame, the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Association Hall of Fame and the Denison University Varsity D Association Hall of Fame.

Hathorn earned a Bachelor of Science in physical education from the State University of New York at Cortland and a Master of Arts in physical education from Ohio State University in 1985.

If you know a W&L faculty member who has done great, accolade-worthy things, tell us about them! Nominate them for an accolade.