Tikeh Tazeh is a 12 year old author who I interviewed during United Soccer Coaches Convention this January. During the pandemic he decided to write a book, Hat Trick, about a youth player his own age. Thank you to Duktig Brand and SoccerChat for joining me on this episode!
Margaret Domka is a former FIFA Referee who is currently pursuing her PhD at Clemson University. While pusuing her referee career she also was a full time Spanish teacher. We talk about her journey, the importance of finding mentors, and setting goals.
Kirsten Windbiel is currently a Graduate Assistant at Clemson University where she works on disability and veteran soccer programming. We met in December when she helped to coordinate the first ever US Soccer Disability Awareness month. We talk about how she gained a love of the game playing with the Milwaukee Soccer Club and Northshore United before continuing at Winona State University.
Kaitlin Kelly is a high school coach and has been a long time staff coach for Stan Anderson's Camp Shutout. We talk about her experiences as a former camper, what it is like to be a part of Stan's team, and her time as a Graduate Assistant at Wayne State College in Nebraska. Kaitlin also shares her experiences volunteer coaching in Jamaica and what the sport and opportunity means to athletes.
Sue Moynihan is the Marketing Director for Keeper Goals, her family business. Sue is an accomplished soccer coach and has dedicated herself to creating opportunities for women through the Wisconsin Women's Soccer Advisory Council. She started her coaching career at University of Wisconsin Milwaukee she coached at Purdue and helps with the University of Utah program. She coached youth, was a Director of Coaching, and frequently worked for the Regional and State ODP organizations.
Jaimee Cooper is a dietician who specializes in supporting female soccer athletes. We talk about how important it is to think of food as fuel and of giving your body what it needs and the impact on performance and recovery.
Rachel Breton is a retired professional ahtlete who played for Sky Blue as well as in Norway. Today she remains active as a soccer coach, strength and conditioning coach, as well as in marketing, social media and operations roles.
Jen Brooks is the Athletic Director for Ursuline Academy in St. Louis. She was a multisport athlete in high school and college. She is passionate about growing women and girls as coaches and founded the Global Community of Women in High School Sports. She also hosts a podcast Time Out with Jen Brooks.
Lisa Berg is the Assistant Coach for Women's Soccer at Bethel University. She has been active in the program Growing The Game For Girls where she has helped athletes in Uganda and twenty other countries. She is very active with the ODP program and developing other coaches.
Susie Petruccelli is the author of Raised a Warrior which provides an insight into her experiences playing soccer as a young woman, through her years playing at Harvard, and to ways that we can continue to advocate for women in sports. She is an advocate and someone who pushes for change to create more opportunity and supports projects such as Equal Playing Field and is a producer of Warriors of a Beautiful Game.
Skye Eddy Bruce is the founder of Soccer Parenting Association, a Coach, Coach Educator, and former Goal Keeper. We talk about her leadership in each of these areas as well as why Goalkeepers tend to have leadership qualities and traits.
Lynn Berling-Manuel is the CEO of United Soccer Coaches. Prior to this role she served as a board member of the organization and worked as both the CEO of Soccer America and as the Chief Marketing Officer for AYSO, one of the largest sports organizations in the world. She talks openly about her mentors and some of the ways she has established her presence as a leader. We also talk briefly about the United Soccer Coaches Convention that will be virtual this year, January 11th-15th.
Sam Ugulava is a lifelong fan of the game of soccer and played through her years at Grove City College. At the age of 19 she was inspired to start a college recruiting application, Profile Passer. Since then she has continued to serve the game of soccer, been an advocate for the role of women in sport, and helped to co-found Techne Futbol. She gives back willingly to others as a commitment she made to the mentors who helped her along the way.
Adriana Contreras is a California based referee and a swim coach. Today she helps to mentor and helps college referees connect with one another through helping to manage NISOA Social Media. We talk about her journey to get her where she is now and how tenacity and grit can help both referees and swimmers that she works with.
Dean Linke is a sportscaster and announcer that has been in sports media for over thirty years. He has covered a variety of sports but is a very well known voice for soccer. He has worked with the US National Teams, many colleges and leagues, the NC Courage, and more.
Coach Lesle Gallimore spent 26 years leading the program at University of Washington. After ending her tenure as a college coach she joined the Girls Academy as the Commissioner in their inaugural season and working with the organization to save soccer for approximately 7000 females.
Tori Penso became the first women in twenty years to officiate an MLS match. We talk a little bit about this special game, some of her mentors in officiating, and ways she continues to give back and grow other officials. In addition to officiating NWSL and other professional games, Tori also serves as NISOA's Managing Director.
Don Williams was a college soccer coach for 22 years across multiple divisions of the sport. Today he helps athletes find their right college fit through his work at Sports Recruiting USA. He is passionate about helping schools and players align and has some great tips on recruiting and ways to make the process work best for everyone.
Becky Burleigh is the head coach for women's soccer at the University of Florida. She has led the Gators program for over twenty five years and coached for over thirty years. Her team has won a national championship and numerous conference championships. She is very active in terms of giving back to the game and developing other coaches, as well as getting her players ready for their futures both in soccer and in life.
Vince Ganzberg is the Education Content Creator for United Soccer Coaches. In this role he not only teaches the content but he also helps to build new courses, work with new styles and formats of teaching, and leading coach dialogue such as Match Day. He has worked in similar roles for US Soccer and coached at all levels of the game with much of his time being in a high school setting.
Anna Tuuri is a 14yr old soccer player, referee, and coach. She plays Goalkeeper while navigating a high school schedule, taking community college classes, coaching special needs athletes, volunteering (300hrs in a month), and hosting Keep The Game Beautiful. She is verbally committed to play at University of Wisconsin Stevens Point and plans to be a Special Education teacher when she gets older. Dad (Dan) interviews her for this special episode while we celebrate her 15th birthday later this we...
Julio Serrano is the Chair for the Latino Coaches Council of the United Soccer Coaches organization. He is part of the staff of Illinois Youth Soccer and helps to lead other coaches in expanding the game and it’s opportunity to everyone. We talk about the work that the council is doing, how it has united around COVID. He is a big advocate of hearing from youth and remembering why we celebrate the game.
After a two week break due to a Derecho (Land Hurricane) that hit Iowa with 140mph winds, removed over half of our trees, and damaged nearly every building in our city, we are back! Big Joe Velazco is a goalkeeper coach with high energy who loves to serve the youth game. We talk a bit about his philosophies as a coach, how he has overcome diversity, and ways he inspires players. He is also someone who helped me deepen my love of the game and I will always appreciate that.
Jess Nash is the Director of Coaching for Wisconsin Rush. She is involved in organizations such as WeCoach and the Wisconsin Women in Soccer Alliance. She is a Grassroots Coach instructor and helps to bring new and future coaches into the game.
Yael Averbuch-West is the founder of Techne Futbol and the NWSL Players Association. In this episode we talk about her experiences playing on the US Women's National Team, at UNC, and her experiences playing both professionally in the US and Sweden.
Sam Cary grew up knowing she'd want to play soccer in the BIG10. She just completed her freshman season at the University of Iowa where she started 21 times and earned 1,667 minutes on the pitch. She is also an incredible referee and has had significant opportunities to serve the game in this role, including at the USYS Nationals.
Colton Bryant and his Chargers at Columbia State College in Tennessee are making big marks for a program that is only a couple of years old. Colton began coaching out of necessity to survive as a student athlete. He soon found it was a love of his and is proud to have an opportunity to coach in the NJCAA at a two year institution.
Eric Vaughter (EV) is a goal keeper coach who has worked with youth just learning the position through professionals playing in the MLS. In addition he has built a career in the sporting goods industry, including at Reusch where he leads grassroots outreach efforts in the United States. Despite all of his accomplishments and the various places he has coached or played, he remains humble and shares his genuine joy and love for the sport with everyone.
Demitrius White grew up in Milwaukee. As a nine year old he started to play soccer with the Milwaukee Simba SC. He developed under his coaches, including the legendary Jimmy Banks. He made a name for himself through his youth years, including ODP and National Camp experiences. He played for the MLS Chicago Fire and was captain of the Puerto Rican National Team. He always knew he would return to help run the Simba FC Club in Milwaukee when he retired from his playing career.
Justin Vorster grew up playing soccer in Malawi and later in South Africa’s first division. He came to the United States and developed a coaching career that has involved youth of all ages, collegiate, and even WPSL opportunities. Justin holds his USSF A and resides in Iowa.
