Jessica Evanson was named an assistant coach in December of 2019 and will enter her fourth season with the Aggies in 2023.
In the 2022 season, Utah State advanced to the Mountain West tournament quarterfinals, reaching the conference tournament in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 2013-14. The Aggies led the league in total points scored (87), total assists (31), total shots (300), total shots on goal (141) and were tied for first in goals scored (28). USU landed three players on Mountain West all-conference teams as juniors Kelsey Kaufusi and Alex Day plus freshman Kaylie Chambers were all named second-team all-Mountain West. Chambers also earned MW all-newcomer team honors. Utah State had six players receive academic all-district honors from the association of College Sports Communicators (formerly CoSIDA). Sophomores Bizzy Arevalo, Addy Symonds and Tenzi Knowles, juniors Kelsey Kaufusi and Kylie Olsen, and senior Sara Taylor all were awarded the honor.
In 2021 and her first season as part of head coach Manny Martins’ staff, Evanson helped the Aggies to their most victories during the Mountain West era as Utah State opened the 2021 season with a 7-1-1 mark in non-conference play, the best record heading into conference play in school history. The non-conference slate included a 2-1 overtime victory at No. 18 BYU, the first win over a ranked opponent in USU history and the only loss for the Cougars at home in 2021. Under Martins, Utah State scored 30 goals, the most since the 2016 season as the Aggies set a school record with 34 total assists. Three members of the Utah State roster earned postseason conference honors as senior midfielder Ashley Cardozo was named first-team all-MW, junior keeper Diera Walton was named second-team all-MW and redshirt freshman defender Addy Symonds was named to the all-newcomer team.
In her first season in Logan, Evanson helped the Aggies to a 5-4-1 record during the COVID-shifted 2020 season. The Aggies scored 1.60 goals per game during the year while allowing only 1.00 goals to opponents. Evanson helped Kelsey Steed to second-team all-Mountain West honors as Steed was also named to the Mountain West all-newcomer team.
Evanson was most recently the assistant coach for both the men’s and women’s programs at Salt Lake Community College. Under her watch, the SLCC keepers carried a goals-against-average of 0.73, as the Bruins finished the season with a 12-1-1 overall record and an unbeaten 9-0-1 record in league play. One of her keepers, Siu Pauni, a recent addition to the Utah State roster, led the Bruins with more than 1,000 minutes in goal, playing in 12 games with eight starts and logging a team-best 26 saves. The Bruin attack was also strong under Evanson, as SLCC totaled 72 goals, averaging 5.14 per game and outscoring opponents by more than a 7:1 ratio.
On the men’s side, SLCC keepers carried a goals-against-average of 0.92 and totaled five shutouts as the Bruins finished the 2019 season with an overall mark of 14-1-1. The Bruin men wracked up 63 goals during year, outscoring opponents by more than a 5:1 ratio. Individually, sophomore Cassidy Adams earned NJCAA All-American honors on the women’s side, while freshman Ryen Jiba and sophomore Isaac Roy earned NJCAA All-American honors on the men’s side. Additionally, Jiba was named the Region 18 Player of the Year, while Roy was named the Region 18 Co-Gaolie of the Year.
Evanson was a stalwart goalkeeper in her own right, appearing in 58 matches with 28 starts at Utah Valley University from 2011-15. Evanson led the Wolverines with more than 2,000 minutes in goal as a junior, appearing and starting in 22 contests during the year and leading UVU with 81 saves and a goals-against-average of 0.84. In all, Evanson recorded more than 4,682 minutes in goal for the Wolverines in her career, carrying a goals-against-average of 1.08 and totaling 201 career saves.
Evanson was named first-team all-WAC, the WAC Defensive Player of the Year and the WAC Tournament MVP as a junior and was later named as the UVU Female Athlete of the Year as a senior. She was also strong in the classroom, earning a pair of academic all-WAC accolades, and was a leader on the pitch, serving as the team captain.
Evanson returned to UVU following her playing career and cut her coaching teeth as the direction of operations and later as a student manager with the Wolverines. She also worked as the director of goalkeepers with the Utah Arsenal Futbol Club during her time in Utah County.
Evanson graduated with a degree in psychology from Utah Valley in 2015 and returned to UVU to earn her master’s in business administration in 2019. Evanson graduated from Sky View High School in 2011, where she was named an all-region goalkeeper for the Bobcats and was also a member of the state championship track & field team and 4x400-meter state championship relay team.