In November 2025, the Archie Williams girls’ freshman soccer team welcomed a new coach: alumna Mia Venne. Venne drew on her experience as a former collegiate-level soccer player and a former Sir Francis Drake High School varsity athlete to guide the team. The team competed against other freshman and junior varsity teams and finished the season with a 4-10 record.
As a then-Drake athlete, Venne’s teammates and former coaches remembered her discipline. She arrived an hour early every day to practice on the school soccer field before classes began, stayed after school for more practice, and then continued training at home. Her former teammate, current Archie Williams Wellness Outreach Specialist Beatrix Berry, valued Venne’s dedication as a player.
“[Venne] is fierce. She is a speedy player, very skilled, and has her head in the game at all times. I think people on other teams were scared of her, and so we were very lucky to have her on our team,” Berry said.
After graduating from Drake in 2016, Venne played on the Dominican University of California Penguins women’s soccer team from 2016 to 2017. She trained year-round, pushing her body to its limits. As a result, Venne experienced extreme physical strain but remained eager to play.
“I ended up having to go to the hospital after one of the fitness tests because I had already played eight hours of soccer… I was in the ambulance, and I found out I had rhabdomyolysis, which basically [meant] my kidneys were dying. Then I came back and didn’t play the rest of the week, but got back in the next week,” Venne said.
In 2018, Venne returned to Marin County as the assistant varsity soccer coach for San Domenico High School. She worked there for four years before playing on the University of California (UC), Davis women’s club soccer team for two years.
“I was gonna play on [UC Davis’] Division I team, and then the coach got fired, and then COVID happened,” Venne said. “Things did not align, so I ended up playing on their nationally-ranked club team, which got second place in the nation the year before I was there.”
After graduating from UC Davis in 2022, Venne played for the Olympic Club Pre-Professional team. But during a local non-competitive game, Venne tore her meniscus in two places as well as her ACL, and broke her femur and tibia. Now two years later, Venne remains in the recovery process.
“I like to set high goals, to get better and better… but I then got injured, and I can’t play yet… I’ve been out for a while,” Venne said.
In the fall of 2025, Berry, who had coached the Archie Williams girls’ freshman soccer team in the previous season, stepped down from the position to pursue a college degree. Berry still plays soccer on an adult Marin recreation team with Venne, where she encouraged Venne to apply for the open coaching position.
Venne applied and took over as the girls’ freshman team coach starting that fall. The team finished their first season in January of 2026, and Venne is proud of their progress.
“I thought we improved greatly from the beginning to the end. We lost our first game to [Tamalpais High School] 4-0, and then we played them again, and we tied them 0-0, so from that statistic, we improved very well. Developmentally, tactically, and technically, we thrived as a team,” Venne said.
After her first season coaching at Archie Williams, Venne gained valuable insight into the Falcon student-athlete and parent community. She plans to shift her approach to parent communication next year and redirect team events to be held off-campus.
“I definitely want to have a parent-player mandatory meeting before [next] season, explain expectations for practices and games in tournaments, and set those boundaries right away. I would also encourage more team dinners to be held at houses, because it’s more of an inclusive and fun environment for the girls, rather than in the Student Center at school,” Venne said.
Now, Venne is a private college counselor for high school athletes. She draws on her counseling internships throughout Marin, her experience as a collegiate soccer player, and her master’s degree in school counseling from Alliant International University. She started her private practice, (Goal)den Athlete Counseling, in September of 2025, just one month before she began coaching at Archie Williams.
“I’ve experienced the highs, the challenges, and the realities of competing at multiple levels, from NCAA athletics to elite club teams. I’ve also navigated both semester and quarter systems while balancing a full academic course load, so I truly understand what it takes to succeed in college as a student-athlete,” Venne said on her website.
Mark Anderson, who was Venne’s swim coach for nine years on the Sleepy Hollow Swim Team, retains close family ties with Venne. He emphasized Venne’s resilience.
“As you get older, you go through a lot of adversities, and whether it makes or breaks you is hard. Mia hasn’t been broken,” Anderson said.
Though he understands Venne’s frustration in not being able to play soccer, Anderson sees value in her coaching the Archie Williams girls’ freshman soccer team.
“She loves to be active, and for her to have to slow down and think of others rather than herself is, I think, a great thing… So I’m glad that she’s out there, out of her comfort zone, trying to do something to motivate girls to make them better people,” Anderson said.
Venne has been attending physical therapy regularly and is scheduled to heal from her injuries in the fall. Still, her physicians told her that her physical ability may not fully return. This news doesn’t deter Venne, who is determined to get back on the field.
“I’ve been through four knee surgeries, still have pain, and doctors say I won’t get back to playing high-level sports,” Venne said. “Watch me.”
