Ashley Johnston joins Riveters coaching staff, Ivo Mocek returning as head coach

Isobel Cup champion and original Metropolitan Riveters captain Ashley Johnston has joined the team’s coaching staff for the 2020-21 season as an assistant coach. She joins head coach Ivo Mocek, who will be back for his second year with the team.

From our original Captain to Assistant Coach, the Riveters are excited to announce that Ashley "Stretch" Johnston will be joining the coaching team this upcoming season!
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•#ReptheRivs @strettyit
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📸: @AshleyIntile pic.twitter.com/wys40XJeou

— Metropolitan Riveters (@Riveters) May 20, 2020

Johnston came out of retirement last season to join a Riveters blue line that she patrolled for three previous seasons. She earned three assists in 10 games in her return to the team, bringing her career point total to 15 points in 57 games. Johnston played a pivotal role in forging the team’s identity during its inaugural season in 2015-16 and helped lead the Riveters to an Isobel Cup victory in 2018.

During the 2017-18 season, while injured, Johnston appeared behind the Riveters bench as an assistant coach. She also spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Union College. Johnston is currently completing her MBSM at OSU and plans to earn her MBA and Masters in Mechanical Engineering at John’s Hopkins.

The Riveters made big strides in 2019-20 in Ivo Mocek’s first year as head coach. Under Mocek, 32, the Riveters finished with a record of 10-11-3, which was good for third place in the regular season standings behind the Boston Pride and Minnesota Whitecaps. The previous year, the Riveters finished fourth in the league with a record of 4-12-0 under head coach Randy Velischek.

As of yet, there’s no confirmation on whether or not Meghan Cassidy will return for a second year as an assistant coach with the team. The Riveters also named Gabrielle Gjelaj as Director of Hockey Operations.