Two young girls shuffle single-file into the stands of Quinnipiac’s soccer and lacrosse field. It’s located by the North student parking lot. The athletes play on natural grass.

The girls’ mother is right behind them with two baby carriers to hold the twins. She sits down with her four children and watches her husband coach soccer. 

His kids never know anything else. 

One day they’re not all sitting on the bleachers watching Dad. His older daughters graduated university, his twin son and daughter are college juniors. 

Quinnipiac since renovated its soccer and lacrosse field. The tennis courts are located next to North Lot now. And the coach’s wife still watches his matches, now on the new turf. 

Their house is quiet. But head over to Quinnipiac and the noise never stops.

“I actually got the job the day before I got married,” women’s soccer head coach Dave Clarke said. “And then Maire was born in the second season. They’ve all grown up here.”

Dave and his wife Kelly’s eldest daughter Maire graduated in 2021, his middle daughter Aine earned her degree last spring and now his youngest — juniors Bridget and Kevin round out the Clarke legacy in Hamden.

“I think the first photograph that we have that’s not a family photograph Jack McDonald (former Quinnipiac director of athletics) took of the game of Bridget and Kevin together as babies,” Dave said.

It’s not unusual for children to attend the same school that their parents work at. But all four? A nearly 25 year legacy? That’s something rare. 

“I always joke about how Quinnipiac is like my second home,” Bridget said. “I’ve been coming to soccer games, hockey games, pretty much any sporting events, since as long as I can remember.”

Lucky for Bridget, she doesn’t have to attend those games anymore. The lacrosse goalkeeper gets to suit up for the Bobcats and play in them, alongside soccer midfielder Kevin who dawns the blue and white for men’s soccer.

“Coming here was never an issue for me,” Kevin said. “I feel like a lot of people go to college and they’re nervous, they’re away from home, they feel like they miss it. But my dad’s here every day, and then I see my sister every day.”

Navigating life outside the nest isn’t easy, and it’s certainly a tall task when your father is a full-time college coach. But the Clarke’s aren’t concerned about their kids coming home for Christmas or calling during the day. There’s no need to be when they can just knock on his office door.

“Not many parents get to bring their kids to work and be in that environment with them,” Dave said.

That environment extends throughout all of his kids. Maire roomed with former women’s soccer star Selena Salas ‘21, Aine is the team’s current team manager — “like the kid out of “Remember The Titans”” as Dave put it.

Life has always been this way for their family — being swept away and diving right into Quinnipiac’s world. Dave had to learn to walk when he first started. In a literal sense, his kids probably did too. 

“I remember losing a bad game, and one of the players early on figured that if they brought the girls (Maire and Aine) over, that I couldn’t get mad when they were around,” Dave said.

It’s hard to coach a Division I team, plain and simple. The season doesn’t just stop for you to take time and actively raise your kids and bring them to their own games and practices.

But Dave gets to be there, alongside his wife Kelly. 

“I love when my family comes to watch, and they’re always supporting,” Kevin said. “I try to get to as many as my sister’s games and support, I know how important that feels and just having people behind you.”

When Kevin’s at practice, Dave sits in the booth. Then he goes down and coaches his own team. And when it’s time to leave for the afternoon, Bridget comes along with the lacrosse team. 

“It can never be taken away from them that they’re Division I athletes, and it’s had nothing to do with me,” Dave said. “So it’s all their own hard work.” 

Funny, it was just yesterday that they were sitting in the stands with Kelly — huddled next to Maire and Aine when it got chilly. 

That’s just life. It’s swift and it’s fleeting and family means something. Everyone wants to feel at home with the people they love. 

What’s the problem with that home being Quinnipiac?