Johns Hopkins University Athletics

Updated: April 2026
First Day at Johns Hopkins: April 12, 2021

James Albanese joined the Blue Jay coaching staff in March 2021. He came to Homewood after coaching stints with the Princeton Field Hockey Club, The Hun School of Princeton and Holy Cross. Albanese was promoted to Associate Head Coach in April 2024. 

Hopkins has posted a stunning 103-13 (.888) record, won five Centennial Conference Tournament titles and finished as the NCAA Runner-up four times in Albanese's five seasons at Homewood. JHU has garnered NFHCA Coaching Staff of the Year honors in each of his five seasons.

JHU tied the school record with 22 wins, the third 20-win season in the last five years, and made the NCAA title game. The Blue Jays won their seventh straight conference title and shutout seven-time defending NCAA Champion Middlebury in the quarterfinals to punch its ticket to the NCAA Final Four.

Hopkins won the straight Centennial Conference title and advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals, finishing with a 19-4 record in 2024. The Blue Jays went 21-2 and won their fifth straight Centennial Conference Championship in 2023. Hopkins then advanced to the NCAA Championship game for the third consecutive year. 

In 2022, Johns Hopkins went 19-4 en route to the Centennial Conference Championship and a national runner-up finish. In his first season at Homewood, the Blue Jays won a school-record 22 games, won the 2021 Centennial Conference Championship and finished as the NCAA Runner-up. It was Hopkins' third straight trip to the NCAA Final Four, but first appearance in the national title game. 
 
Albanese joined the Princeton Field Hockey Club in October 2020, where he coached U14, U16 and U18 athletes for one of the nation's top field hockey clubs. Prior to that, he spent one season as an assistant coach at The Hun School of Princeton. 
 
Albanese began his coaching career while an undergraduate at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. He spent three years as a student assistant as well as a practice player for the Minutewomen, helping them to 39 wins, two Atlantic 10 Tournament Championships and a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances. After graduating in 2018 with a degree in geology, Albanese spent two years as an assistant coach at College of Holy Cross before returning to his alma mater, The Hun School, as an assistant coach with the Raiders' field hockey team. 
 
Albanese played for the US Men's Indoor National Team from 2019 to 2023 and the US Men's Developmental Team from 2021 to 2025. He also played for the East Coast High Performance Team. He has USA Field Hockey Level 2 Coach and Umpire certifications.