With the century-long success of soccer at Haverford, it was not surprising that when women's soccer began at the college in the mid-’80s, it found fertile soil and took root quickly.
Swift progress was made from a combined club with Bryn Mawr, to an all-Haverford club and then to Haverford's first varsity in 1985. One member of that first varsity who earned all-league status was Wendy Smith ’87 who returned as head coach of the program before eventually becoming Haverford’s current Director of Athletics. Smith's teams were outstanding, and, in 1995, the Fords won the Centennial Conference Championship.
In 2003, senior goalkeeper Jen Trowbridge ’04 was named to the third-team All-Mid-Atlantic Region, after earning second-team All-Centennial Conference honors and setting the College's record for career shutouts. Trowbridge joined the ranks of other Fords who have received all-region recognition, including Jessica Rosen ’96 (second team 1995), Amanda Salter ’98 (third team 1997), Courtney Nolan ’99 (third team both 1998 and 1999), and Liz Young ’02 (third team 2001).
The team’s rich tradition of academic and athletic success continued. Liz Young ’01, Claire Sandstrom ’02, and Katrina Julian ’03 were recipients of academic all-region honors, and Julian was a finalist for the college's Ambler Award - given annually to the best student-athlete in the senior class. Becky Gaugler ’05 won the college's MacIntosh Award, which honors the top scholar-athlete in the first-year class, and Haverford's Ambler Award - which honors the top scholar-athlete in the senior class.
Elena Kozakewich ’06 became the Fords’ first-ever first-team All-American after leading Haverford to a 15-2-2 record and top 25 national ranking in 2004. Kozakewich, who also was named Centennial Conference Player of the Year, and classmates Ashley Emmons ’06 and Meej Kim ’06 earned all-region honors that year as well, while Cathy Carbonaro ’06, Andrea Fishman ’07, and Ryan Hedrick ’08 joined Kozakewich, Emmons and Kim as all-conference selections.
In 2007, Jamie Schneck (Gluck) became the program's new head coach and has continued the success of the program. The Fords won nine games in 2007, the highest win total for a Haverford coach in his/her first season, and qualified for the Centennial Conference tournament (which started in 2001).
Led by Centennial Directors’ Team (all-conference first team and all-conference academic honor roll) forward Katie Van Aken ’12, Haverford racked up 12 wins in 2009. The Fords defeated No. 20 Swarthmore, 3-0, for their first-ever win against a nationally-ranked opponent. Schneck was tabbed as the Centennial's Coach of the Year.
In 2011, the Fords secured a No. 4 conference seed and advanced to the semifinals, where they fell to No.1 seed and eventual winner Johns Hopkins. The squad had six players named to the all-conference teams, the most since 2004 when six were also named.
The 2012 squad qualified for the playoffs for the sixth consecutive season and claimed its first Centennial Conference tournament championship with a 2-1 victory over host and 24th-ranked Johns Hopkins University. The Fords went on to play the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to a scoreless tie through regulation and two overtime periods in the first round of the NCAA tournament at Walton Field.
The Fords went back to the NCAA Tournament during the 2013 season as they were 10-4-6 during the regular season, achieving 10-win mark for the fifth straight season under Schneck. The back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Championship were the first time Haverford has done appeared in two straight NCAA Tournaments in program history. Haverford’s most recent trip to the NCAA Tournament came following the 2019 season after the Fords finished with a 12-5-2 record during a year which saw they reset to the program record for both consecutive shutouts (7) and victories (8).
The team's schedule now includes non-league national and regional powers. The Fords also have made trips to Chicago, New England, Virginia, Atlanta, Texas, North Carolina, metropolitan New York and Florida for competitions against top-quality teams.