2010 Kansas Soccer Coaches Bios

Transcription

1 Coaches Bios

2 Head Coach Mark Francis Mark Francis Head Coach 12th Season Southern Methodist (1987) 39 Ready to embark on his 12th season at Kansas, head coach Mark Francis has established his program as one of the nation s elite. In the last seven years, Francis has directed the Jayhawks to 90 wins, and a.627 winning percentage with three NCAA Tournament appearances. Francis is the winningest coach in Kansas soccer history at (.593) overall, with seven seasons of at least 11 victories. He has led the Jayhawks to four NCAA Tournament appearances (2001, 03, 04, 08) and a Big 12 title in Francis teams have advanced to the Big 12 Soccer Championship in each of the last 10 seasons. The 12th-year coach picked up his 100th victory at Kansas in 2007, a 4-1 triumph over conference foe Texas Tech. Francis became the fourth-fastest Big 12 coach to amass 100 wins in league history, reaching the milestone in just 177 matches. In 2009, Francis Jayhawks battled injuries throughout the season and managed a overall mark, which qualified them for a 10th-consecutive conference tournament berth. KU opened the season at 7-1-1, and was ranked as high as No. 17 in the country. This marked the seventh-straight year that the Jayhawks found themselves in the national polls for at least one week. Francis coached three All-Big 12 selections, as well as three players who were selected all-region by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA). Following the season, senior defender Estelle Johnson was drafted by the Los Angeles Sol of the Women s Professional Soccer League, the first Jayhawk to be drafted by a professional soccer league. Freshman Sarah Robbins was also honored by being invited to try out for the Canadian National U-20 team. The 2008 season was one for the record books as Kansas recorded 13 wins and returned to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in four years. The Jayhawks knocked off four nationally-ranked teams en route to their tournament berth including a pair of wins over longtime nemesis Texas A&M. KU became the first team in three years to defeat the Aggies twice in the same season. Francis Jayhawks opened the season with a 3-0 rout of No. 20 Purdue to earn a spot in the national polls, marking the sixthconsecutive year that KU has spent at least one week in the Top 25. The Jayhawks defeated four other ranked teams during the season and capped their remarkable run with a 2-1 triumph over Denver in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Kansas offense produced the second-most goals (45) in school history in 2008, with Dolinsky and McCabe tying for the team lead with nine tallies. Several players received accolades throughout and following the season. Freshman Emily Cressy was named a Freshman All-American by Soccer Buzz as well as Soccer America, while teammates Monica Dolinsky and Estelle Johnson joined her on the All- Central Region Team. Dolinsky was also named All-Big 12 First Team, while Cressy became KU s first Big 12 Rookie of the Year. In 2007, Francis Jayhawks recorded a mark in the Big 12 to place third in the league. It marked the fifth-straight year that Kansas placed fourth or better in the conference, and the fourth time in Francis tenure that KU placed in the top three in the conference standings. Despite injuries to key players early in the season, the Jayhawks reached their eighthstraight Big 12 Soccer Championship in San Antonio. KU capped its thrilling run in Big 12 play with a memorable 2-1 triumph over nationally-ranked Missouri in the final contest of the regular season. Junior Estelle Johnson and freshman Katie Williams both earned All-Central Region honors, marking the seventh time in the last eight years that Francis has coached multiple all-region honorees. In 2006, Francis team finished with double-digit victories for the sixth year in a row. The Jayhawks finished fourth in the Big 12 with a

3 Head Coach Mark Francis 42. Meghan Miller also tacked on 11 shutouts to her record, finishing with 30 career shutouts and a program-low 0.57 goals against average (GAA). The team also broke the record for goals scored with 47 and had the most shutouts with 13. The Jayhawks also garnered individual awards with eight players making the all-conference teams, the most of any Big 12 team. KU also boasted four All-Americans, the highest total among any team across the country. In 2003, Kansas soccer reached new heights under Francis leadership. The Jayhawks posted an mark and advanced to the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament. With a record in the Big 12, KU finished third. Along the way, the Jayhawks posted their first-ever win in program history against Big 12 rival Nebraska and defeated Border Showdown foe Missouri twice in Columbia, including a 2-0 win in the NCAA Tournament conference record. KU s season was highlighted by a 4-3 come-from-behind victory against No. 12 Duke on Sept. 10, which featured a four-goal rally in the second half by the Jayhawks. KU also posted road victories at Oklahoma, Nebraska, Iowa State and Missouri and earned a national ranking in the top 25 polls for the fifth time in the last six seasons. The team jumped to No. 18 in the Soccer America poll, and No. 21 in the Soccer Times poll on Sept. 11. The Jayhawks finished the 2005 season in a four-team tie for second place in the Big 12 Conference. The season was highlighted by a one-goal victory against Texas on CSTV, KU s first-ever win against the Longhorns and an overtime win against Border Showdown rival Missouri. The Jayhawks also earned a trip to their sixth-straight Big 12 Soccer Championship in the process. The 2004 season was a year filled with program firsts as numerous records were broken. The Jayhawks compiled a program-best record of 18-5 on their way to the Big 12 Championship. It was the first for the soccer team and second among KU women s sports, the first going to basketball in Francis earned Big 12 Coach of the Year as well as the Central Region Coach of the Year honors. He also won his 100th overall match with a victory against Texas Tech on Oct. 1. KU s 8-2 league record was its best as well. Along the way, the Jayhawks beat Texas A&M for the first time, 1-0, at College Station. The Jayhawks also received their first-ever national top 10 ranking, topping out at sixth, and were ranked in the top 20 for most of the season. They also advanced to the NCAA tournament for the second year in a row, this time entering as the eighth-seed and hosting the first two rounds. In 2004, Kansas players rewrote the record books. Caroline Smith added 11 goals to her previous mark in 2004, totaling a program-best Along with the team accomplishments, several players were honored for their efforts during the 2005 campaign, including Caroline Smith being named to several All-America teams as well as Holly Gault being selected as a Freshman All-American by Soccer Buzz. With Francis help, KU s players etched their names in the record book, as Smith became the program s all-time leader in goals, points and game-winning goals and junior Meghan Miller set the school mark in career shutouts and career GAA. In 2002, Francis led Kansas to an overall record of , including a then-school record six-straight wins and a seven-game unbeaten streak during the first half of the season. The Jayhawks opened the season 6-1-1, marking their best start ever. Francis team ranked in the Central Region s Top 10 for 10 consecutive weeks. During KU s second consecutive winning season, Francis helped develop one of the most prolific freshmen in Jayhawk history,

4 Head Coach Mark Francis 41 Caroline Smith. After setting a KU single-season record with 12 goals scored, Smith was named to the Big 12 All-Newcomer team, as well as Soccer Buzz s Freshman All-America Third Team, Central Region All-Freshmen Team and All-Central Region Third Team. In 2001, Francis guided the Jayhawks to a overall record and Big 12 mark. For his efforts, Soccer Buzz named Francis the 2001 Central Region Coach of the Year, as he led his Jayhawks into the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. The Jayhawks finished the season ranked sixth in the Central Region, marking the ninth-best turnaround in the nation, improving five games from the previous season. The 2001 Kansas team shattered many school records, including more than 10 single-season individual, seven career and over a dozen team records. In addition, Francis saw four of his players - Pardis Brown and Hilla Rantala (second team), and Monica Brothers and Meghan Miller (freshman team) - garner All-Big 12 honors. In 1999, the Jayhawks set a team season record with eight victories and tied the KU record for home wins with five. Francis attackoriented system contributed to single-season records for points (87) and assists (29). A 1987 graduate of Southern Methodist University, Francis was a three-time All-American selection for the Mustangs. As a senior, he was named SMU s Male Athlete of the Year, the Dallas All- Sports Association College Athlete of the Year and was selected to Soccer America s All-College MVP Team. In addition, he was a twotime nominee for the Hermann Trophy, given to the nation s most outstanding soccer player. Professionally, Francis played 10 seasons as a member of the Dayton Dynamos (NPSL), Mobile Revellers, Dallas Rockets (USISL) and the Orlando Lions (APSL). After being hired at South Alabama just a few weeks prior to the start of the 1996 season, Francis inherited a depleted roster and finished his first season with a 2-17 record. The following year, he led the Jaguars to an mark, including an unbeaten regular season in Big South Conference play. The 16-win turnaround was the biggest in NCAA Division I soccer history. His 1997 squad surpassed nearly every offensive school record at South Alabama, including goals scored. He was named 1997 Central Region Coach of the Year by Soccer Buzz Magazine. South Alabama finished 13-5 in 1998 and Francis earned Big South Conference Coach of the Year honors for the second consecutive year. In the summer of 2003, Francis served as an assistant for the U.S. Under-21 National Team that won the gold medal in the Under-21 Nordic Cup in Denmark. Francis was with the team when training began in January at the U.S. Soccer Training Headquarters in Chula Vista, Calif., and traveled with the squad as it toured Brazil. Francis has served as an Olympic Development Program staff coach in Region II and III and is a Kansas state ODP coach. He holds The Francis File Personal Information Name...Mark Francis Hometown... London, England Education...Southern Methodist University, 1987 Degree...B.A., Physical Education Wife...Tiffany Children... Carlin, Hayley and Caleb Coaching Awards Big 12 Coach of the Year Soccer Buzz Central Region Coach of the Year Soccer Buzz Central Region Coach of the Year Big South Conference Coach of the Year Big South Conference Coach of the Year Soccer Buzz Conference Coach of the Year Coaching Achievements Five NCAA Tournament appearances (1997, 2001, 03, 04, 08) Largest turnaround in Division I history (16 wins) (1997) 150 career wins (117 at Kansas; 33 at South Alabama) Team has been ranked each of the past six years, reaching as high as No. 6 in the country Coaching Experience Years Place Position 1999-present University of Kansas...Head Coach University of South Alabama...Head Coach 1997 Mobile Revelers (USISL)...Player/Coach 1995 Brookhaven College...Head Coach Highland Park High School (Texas)...Head Coach Playing Experience Years Team League 1997 Mobile Revelers...USISL Mesquite Kickers...USISL 1994 Dallas Rockets...USISL 1993 Dallas-Fort Worth Toros...USISL Dallas Rockets...USISL Dayton Dynamo... NPSL Orlando Lions...APSL SMU... NCAA Playing Honors Year Award 1987 Soccer America All-College Team MVP 1987 Dallas All-Sports Association College Athlete of the Year 1987 SMU Male Athlete of the Year 1987 All-America 1986 NCAA All-America First Team 1985 All-America an A coaching license from the United States Soccer Federation, a National Certificate and premier license in Brazil from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America and a youth certificate from the Dutch Soccer Federation. A native of London, England, Francis and his wife, Tiffany, reside in Lawrence with their three children: Carlin, Hayley and Caleb.

5 Associate Head Coach Kelly Miller Kelly Miller Associate Head Coach 12th Season The Cooper Union (1996) Kelly Miller enters his 12th season at the University of Kansas and third as the Associate Head Coach under Mark Francis. In 2008, Miller was elevated to his current position after serving as an assistant coach for the previous nine seasons. Kelly has shown a lot of loyalty and dedication to our program, Francis said. He has great insight into the game and is invaluable to our staff as we continue to strive to get better each year and win another Big 12 Conference title. I look forward to continuing to work with him for many more years. Miller has worked under Francis since the 1999 season, helping the Jayhawks reach the NCAA Tournament four times (2001, 03, 04, 08), and capture KU s first Big 12 soccer title in The Miller File Personal Information Name...Kelly Miller Hometown... Lawrence, Kan. Education...The Cooper Union, 1996 Degree... B.A., Fine Arts Coaching Experience Years Place Position 2008-present University of Kansas... Associate Head Coach University of Kansas...Assistant Coach 2001-present Region II ODP... Staff Assistant 42 Along with coaching the Jayhawks, Miller is a Region II Olympic Development Program staff coach and a Kansas state ODP coach. He holds a USSF B Coaching License. A goalkeeper during his playing days, Miller works primarily with the KU keepers. He also coaches the defenders to unite the two into a cohesive unit. His duties also include serving as the teams recruiting coordinator. Since his appointment, the Jayhawk defense has showed marked improvements statistically. Miller was responsible for coaching the 2004 squad to the lowest goals against average in program history at 0.55 and fewest goals allowed with 13. As the Jayhawk goalkeeper coach, Miller has developed his keepers to contend for conference and national recognition. Over the last five seasons, KU s goalkeepers have finished with a season goals against average below 1.00 three times, including a 0.98 average in In 2003 and 2004, KU goalkeeper Meghan Miller was named All-Big 12 First Team and in 2004, she garnered second team All-America honors. In 2006, Miller s tutelage helped sophomore Julie Hanley post a 0.98 goals against average and seven shutouts. Hanley was named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week in two consecutive weeks. In 2007, Miller helped senior Colleen Quinn earn three consecutive Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week honors, and post shutouts in four matches. Miller graduated with a bachelor s degree in fine arts from The Cooper Union in In 1999, along with Francis, Miller made the move to KU to train the goalkeepers. He became a full-time assistant the following spring. He currently resides in Lawrence.

6 Assistant Coach Antoinette Love Antoinette Love Assistant Coach Third Season Arizona State (2002) 43 Antoinette Love enters her third season at the University of Kansas after joining the Jayhawk staff as an assistant in March, Love works primarily with the team s attackers and also assists with recruiting efforts. Last year, the Jayhawks tied a school record with 47 goals (2.14 per match), which ranked fourth in the Big 12 and 25th in the country. Sophomore Emily Cressy has flourished under Love, scoring 20 goals and 46 points in her first two seasons in the Crimson and Blue. During Love s first season, Kansas offensive production increased dramatically as the Jayhawks scored 45 goals in 23 games (1.96 per game). The team s 45 goals ranked fourth in the Big 12 and was the highest total by a Kansas team since Prior to coming to KU, Love served as the interim head coach at the University of Nevada-Reno during the 2007 season, after three seasons as an assistant with the Wolfpack. She helped lead the Pack to its best season in program history in 2006 as Nevada turned in program highs for wins (13), goals (43), points (126) and shutouts (12). In addition, she helped guide the Pack to its first WAC Tournament title and first NCAA Tournament appearance. During her time at Nevada, Love helped recruit three consecutive Soccer Buzz topranked recruiting classes in the WAC. Prior to coaching at Nevada, Love was the assistant women s varsity coach at Division III Elmira College in Elmira, N.Y., where she also served as the head women s junior varsity coach. An accomplished athlete in her own right, Love had an impressive playing career while playing for the Arizona State Sun Devils from She was named Arizona State s Rookie of the Year in 1997 as well as being named All-Pac-10 second-team in 1997 and She was the first ASU soccer player to garner all-conference honors. She left her mark in ASU s record book, finishing her career second all- time in points (64), game-winning goals (seven) and assists (18). She ranks third all-time in goals with 23. Her accolades weren t just confined to the playing field, as she was a Maroon and Gold Scholar-Athlete from in addition to being named Academic All-Pac-10 Honorable Mention in Marjanovic, who grew up in Los Angeles, Calif., is a former member of the Croatian National Team. She currently holds a National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Advanced National Diploma. She earned a bachelor s degree in education from Arizona State in 2002 and her master s degree in educational leadership at Nevada in Antoinette Marjanovic Love is married to Jeff Love, who serves as the KU football team s video coordinator. The couple currently resides in Lawrence. The Love File Personal Information Name...Antoinette Marjanovic Love Hometown... Los Angeles, Calif. Education...Arizona State, 2002 Degree...B.A., Education Coaching Experience Years Place Position 2008-present University of Kansas... Assistant Coach 2007 University of Nevada-Reno...Interim Head Coach University of Nevada-Reno... Assistant Coach 2003 Elmira (N.Y.) College... Assistant Coach Playing Experience Years Team League Croatian National Team... International Arizona State... NCAA Playing Honors Year Award 2000 All-Pac-10 Second Team 1997 All-Pac-10 Second Team

7 Volunteer Assistant Jessica Smith Jessica Smith Volunteer Assistant Coach Second Season Kansas (2006) 44 Jessica Smith returns to her alma mater for her second season as a Volunteer Assistant Coach on the Jayhawk staff after playing at KU from Smith has coached at various levels in the Kansas City Metro area the last few years, including as a varsity assistant coach for both the boys and girls teams at Olathe Northwest High School. During her time at Olathe Northwest, she has helped lead the Lady Ravens to back-to-back region championships in 2008 and 2009, while assisting with the Ravens boys region championship team in Several of her players on both the girls and boys sides have gone on to play soccer at the college level. In addition to her coaching duties at Olathe Northwest, Smith has served as an assistant coach with the Kansas State ODP girls program. In 2008, she was an assistant with the 1992 team, which was the first Kansas ODP team (boys or girls) to win an ODP Regional Championship. Her team went on to participate in the US Youth Soccer National ODP Championship tournament. In the summer of 2009, she also served as the head coach for the Kansas ODP 1995 team, and is a Coach In Training on the ODP Region 2 staff for the 1996 developmental camp. Smith has also spent time working with TOPSoccer programs throughout the state of Kansas as a chairperson as well as a coach. TOPSoccer is U.S. Youth Soccer s outreach program for children with special needs. Smith was an accomplished player during her years at KU as well. She served as a Jayhawks team captain in , and was twice named Academic All-Big 12. Her 2004 team won the Big 12 regular season championship - first in program history - while her 2003 squad advanced to the third round of the NCAA Tournament (round of 16). In 83 career games in the Crimson and Blue, Smith scored 16 goals and registered 10 assists, including seven goals during her freshman season. She was also named Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week twice as well as to the Soccer Buzz Elite Team of the Week in A native of Wichita, Kan., Smith holds a USSF National D Coaching License. She graduated from KU in 2006 with a degree in sports and fitness management. Smith currently resides in Roeland Park, Kan. The Smith File Personal Information Name...Jessica Smith Hometown...Wichita, Kan. Education... Kansas, 2006 Degree... B.A., Sports and Fitness Management Coaching Experience Years Place Position 2009 University of Kansas... Volunteer Assistant Olathe Northwest (boys & girls)... Assistant Coach 2009 Kansas State ODP Head Coach 2008 Kansas State ODP Assistant Coach Playing Experience Years Team League University of Kansas... NCAA Playing Honors Year Award Academic All-Big 12 First Team

8 Support Staff Soccer Staff Sean Lester Senior Associate Athletics Director Mary Beth Marchiony Academic and Career Counseling John Zirkelbach Certified Athletic Trainer Molly McKinnon Strength and Conditioning Coach Demetrius Daniels Equipment Manager 45 Caitlyn Johnson Interpreter Abbey Mastracco Media Relations Mike Cummings Media Relations Megan Harrity Counseling and Sport Psychologist Laura Frizell Marketing and Gameday Experience Chris Lansdell Marketing and Gameday Experience George Barnes Grounds Keeper Frank Masterson Facilities Scott Hahn Ticket Operations Jenn Bono Rock Chalk Video Molly Bachand Office manager Debbie Van Saun Senior Women s Administrator