Heather graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of California, San Diego in 1990. She was a four-year letter winner on the women’s soccer team (1986-1989). During her collegiate playing career, Hilliard reached the NCAA Division III Final Four three of her four seasons. During Heather’s senior year, her team won the school’s first NCAA Division III National Championship. She holds the all-time career goal scoring record at UC San Diego (70 goals) and was a two-time All-American player. In recognition of her playing success, Heather was inducted into the UC San Diego Athletics Hall of Fame in 2018.
 |  |
Heather received her Master of Science degree in Sport Management from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst in 1992. Upon graduation, she returned to her alma mater, UC San Diego, where she worked as Assistant Director of Athletics for 8 years. Hilliard resigned from UC San Diego in 2000 to focus on her growing family. She volunteered at a community soccer Club in Carlsbad where she coached her daughters on recreational teams and served as a Recreational Division Director for the league. After much volunteering success, Carlsbad hired her as Director of Recreation and a competitive coach. Heather returned to La Jolla in 2016 when she was hired by La Jolla Youth Soccer as Director of Recreation and Impact coach. She was promoted to Executive Director in 2020.
When asked about her role at La Jolla Soccer, Heather said:
“Serving as Executive Director at La Jolla Youth Soccer is an honor and privilege. My position provides me the opportunity to give back to the youth of this great community and to the sport that I love. I am honored and humbled to work alongside Kristin Jones and Brian McManus as their vision and commitment to excellence in youth soccer is second to none. I look forward to being a part of the continued success and growth of La Jolla Youth Soccer.”
Click on this link to read an article about Hilliard published by UC San Diego Athletics: Heather Hilliard and the Fairytale of '89