In her first year at the helm in South Orange, Thompson took over a rebuilding program that was picked to finish 11th n the BIG EAST, but led them to 15 victories and a seventh-place finish in the conference.  In year two, Thompson's Pirates took another step forward, increasing their BIG EAST win total from six to eight and again exceeded expectations by tying for sixth place after being picked ninth.

Thompson came to Seton Hall after two successful years guided the Canisius to back-to-back top-four finishes in the MAAC regular season and reached at least the MAAC Championship semifinals in both campaigns with a title game appearance in 2020-21.

A native of Moorpark, Calif., Thompson started her coaching career with the club program at VC Tirol in Innsbruck, Austria. She also played professionally for VC Tirol from 2013-15, and as a team captain, helped lead the team to a third-place finish in the Austrian Division I Bundesliga.

Thompson was a four-year letterwinner and a four-time First Team All-Little East Conference selection during her collegiate playing days at UMass Boston from 2009-12, helping the Beacons to four consecutive conference tournament championships and NCAA appearances. The Beacons' career leader in kills (1,803), digs (1,202) and solo blocks (120), she was the first player in conference history to be named Offensive Player of the Year three times in addition to being tabbed as the conference's Rookie of the Year. She closed out her college career by earning her third Little East Conference Tournament Most Outstanding Player award and leading the Beacons to the 2012 NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball National Championship Tournament quarterfinals.

For her outstanding efforts on the court, Thompson was inducted into UMass Boston's Athletics Hall of Fame in 2022.