Comments on Coaches in Conferences

[nycnyc]

It might be useful to have a thread that discusses pros/cons of coaches, coaching styles, etc.  I am particularly interested in the schools in NESCAC, UAA, and NEWMAC.  Bascially, it would be helpful to know if there are certain coaches that are well liked and similarly if there are any red flags with other ones. 

Anyone have any opinions on those current coaches? 

[PlaySimple]

I am most familiar with the UAA coaches.

Brandeis - Young staff. Mary Shimko, the HC, is probably only 30ish years old - +/- a year or two. Denise Dallamora was the prior HC and had been there for years. Even though she's young, Shimko has a good soccer background.

Carnegie Mellon - Yon Struble has been the HC at CM for about 15 years and has done a good job. For the last full season in '19, CM made the NCAA semifinal. Word is that Struble is firm but fair. CM can never be counted out.

Case Western Reserve - Jen Simonetti has only had one full season as the HC at CWRU. She has a lot of experience and a good soccer pedigree. In Simonetti's first year as HC CWRU made the NCAAs but lost in the first round to Wooster. A knock on CWRU has been that they play a soft OOC schedule and then underperform vs the UAA or in the postseason. The current games have probably been set for a while now so perhaps Simonetti can gradually beef up the OOC schedule. I took a peek at the upcoming schedule and CWRU is playing a few decent OOC opponents like Otterbein, Capital, Ohio Northern, Adrian, and Denison. There are still some cupcakes that they should shed, though. It's too early in her tenure for her to get a grade.

Emory - Sue Patberg has done a great job and has not lost many games in her 15 years at Emory. She has one of the best winning percentages of all coaches in the UAA. She's been around soccer for a long time and has a great understanding of the game. She seems to be well-liked by her players. Emory will always be competitive with Patberg at the helm.

NYU - Michelle Canning has been at NYU for 10 years and is still relatively young. I don't know a lot about her but she seems to be a decent coach.

Chicago - Amy Reifert has coached Chicago for 30 years and always has The Maroons in the national conversation. She always manages to have a roster full of players that could have played D1 soccer at a lot of schools and made an impact there as well. She is a fair coach that knows what she's doing and doesn't mess around. Being into it now for her 31st season, I am beginning to wonder how much longer Reifert will continue at the U. Julianne Sitch is now back on staff after having previously been at Chicago from around 2015 to '17. She went to UIC as an AC in 2018 I believe under Brian Rigby. Tom Anagnost followed Brian Rigby at UIC and Sitch was out of there. She wouldn't have stayed on staff at UIC under Anagnost anyway as he is not someone that most people like to work under or have as a coach.  I'm almost wondering if Sitch has come back to Chicago to succeed Reifert. If so, that would be a good succession. Anyone that is familiar with the Chicago soccer scene knows Julianne and knows of her reputation.

Wash U - Jim Conlon was headed toward legend status at Washington until he left for Grand Valley State. Stephanie Gabbert is now the coach but she has the interim label. It seems odd to me since she was not moved to that position internally. Gabbert seems to have a pretty broad background in soccer. Perhaps they're giving her a "trial run" before they bestow the HC label on her. If Conlon were there I would give the program my highest recommendation. That said, Wash U is such a good school that I would not let soccer be the deciding factor if that is where your kid wants to go.

Rochester - Gabe Kleinert is the interim HC after having been Sike's AC for a year. Sike was at Rochester as the HC for 10ish seasons and as an AC for a while before that. Sike was a good guy but his teams always seemed to underperform and some UAA teams viewed games vs Rochester as a bit of a "break." This is the UAA program and coach that I know the least about.

[nycnyc]

Thanks PlaySimple, any updates now that we're in post-season?

Should any of these coaches be avoided if you have multiple options?

Does anyone have any similar thoughts for NESCAC coaches?

[Gray Fox]

Thanks PlaySimple, any updates now that we're in post-season?

Should any of these coaches be avoided if you have multiple options?

Does anyone have any similar thoughts for NESCAC coaches?

I hope your daughter found a good school.

[SimpleCoach]

Had a great conversation with Jamie Gunderson, Head Coach of the 2021 Women's National Champions, Christopher Newport University.

Can speak highly enough of this young coach.

SimpleCoach to Coach with Jamie Gunderson, Head Coach of Christopher Newport University

[VAFury]

Had a great conversation with Jamie Gunderson, Head Coach of the 2021 Women's National Champions, Christopher Newport University.

Can speak highly enough of this young coach.

SimpleCoach to Coach with Jamie Gunderson, Head Coach of Christopher Newport University

Enjoyed this a lot.  Thanks..