University of Dayton Athletics

• Five-time Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year
• 2013 Ohio Soccer Hall of Fame Inductee
• 10-time Atlantic 10 Tournament Champions
• 11-time Atlantic 10 Regular Season Champions
• 10 NCAA Appearances

After 22 seasons at the helm, Mike Tucker retired in January 2017. He built the Flyers into one of the Atlantic 10 Conference's premier programs during his tenure.

He is a five-time Atlantic 10 Women’s Soccer Coach of the Year, the 2009 NSCAA Mid-Atlantic Region Coach of the Year and finalist for the 2009 National Coach of the Year. As head coach at the University of Dayton for the past 21 years, Tucker is the Flyers' all-time wins leader in women’s soccer history with a record of 313-124-33. He became one of just 17 active coaches to have won 300 matches in NCAA Division I women's soccer during the 2015 season. His astounding career conference mark of 167-35-12 is an A-10 record .808 winning percentage.

He has coached and mentored seven NSCAA All-Americans during his tenure. He has coached 61 First Team All-Atlantic 10 selections and the Flyers have had 22 Atlantic 10 Offensive Players of the Year, Defensive Players of the Year, Midfielders of the Year or Rookies of the Year in that same time.

Under Coach Tucker, UD has tallied 11 regular season Atlantic 10 conference titles, 10 conference tournament championships, and 10 NCAA tournament appearances, including advancing to the NCAA Second Round in 2009 and 2010, and a trip to the NCAA Sweet 16 in 2001.

Tucker has a long tradition of molding his student-athletes into winners both on the field, and more importantly, in the classroom. During his 22 years as head coach, the UD women's soccer team has posted a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher, consistently earning the NSCAA Team Academic Award. Following the Fall 2015 semester the Flyers boasted a team-best 3.6 cumulative GPA.

Eight Flyers have been named Academic All-Americans (either CoSIDA or NSCAA). Shannon Kuhl (2003, 2004), was selected First Team Academic All-America in back-to-back seasons. Amanda Gallow was a second team selection in 2008. Kathleen Beljan was Third Team NSCAA in 2011. Colleen Williams earned First team NSCAA honors in 2011 and 2012. Juliana Libertin earned second team NSCAA honors in 2012 and 2013, Sarah Senoyuit was selected to the 2013 Capital One Academic All-America® Division I Women's Soccer Third Team and Alexis Kiehl was named an NSCAA NCAA Division I Women's Scholar All-America Second Team selection in 2016.

Dayton women's soccer team had its shares of ups and downs during the 2016 season but turned it on when it counted most. The Flyers earned a berth to the NCAA Championship by winning their 10th A-10 Championship. Although the Flyers ended the 2016 campaign with a very successful postseason run, the first half of the season had a rocky start, with a 2-5-2 record. Then, as the Flyers entered Atlantic 10 play, they picked up a few key wins over Davidson, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and St. Bonaventure—ending the regular season with a 6-9-3 record, and qualifying as the No. 7 seed out of the eight teams to compete for the A-10 Tournament Championship title. Going into the tournament as underdogs, the Flyers surprised everyone with three consecutive shutout wins over Saint Louis, George Washington, and a huge 7-0 win over the No. 1 seeded Saint Joseph's to win one last championship for Tucker, who retired following the conclusion of the season. UD's season came to an end with a heartbreaking 3-2 loss in the first round of the NCAA tournament against Ohio State in Columbus.

After playing one of the toughest non-conference schedules in history (four of UD's opponents made the 2014 NCAA Tournament, including Stanford and Texas A&M teams that advanced to the Final Four), the Flyers won the 2014 Atlantic 10 Women's Soccer Championship to earn the conference's automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament. To do so, the Flyers had to knock off two teams that dealt them a regular season loss (Saint Joseph's, a 3-1 loss on Oct. 10 and La Salle, a 1-0 loss on Oct. 17) and tied in the regular season finale (VCU, tied 1-1 in double overtime). The Flyers defeated Saint Joseph's 2-1 in overtime in the quarterfinal match; they defeated VCU 3-0 in the semifinal, and La Salle 2-1 in the championship match.

Dayton finished the 2013 season with a record of 14-5-2; going an impressive 7-1-0 in A-10 conference play and capturing its 11th Atlantic 10 regular season championship. The Flyers finished 13th in the nation in scoring offense at 2.38 goals per game. UD sophomore Nicole Waters finished as the NCAA's statistical champion in assists per game.

Tucker was inducted into the Ohio Soccer Hall of Fame and also received the Honor Award from the Ohio Collegiate Coaches' Association in 2013.

In 2012 the Flyers finished the season with a 14-4-2 record.They led the nation in scoring offense with 2.9 goals per game. UD was one of only two schools (Miami was the other) in NCAA Division I women’s soccer to have three players score in double figures: Colleen Williams (17), Ashley Campbell (12) and Juliana Libertin (12). Williams was first in the NCAA in assists per game (.7) and third in points per game (2.4). Libertin was 12th in the country in assists per game. The 2012 season also marked the first ever, nationally-televised game on Dayton’s campus when the Flyers hosted Boston University in the NSCAA Women's College Soccer Game of the Week featured on FOX Soccer Channel. UD won 2-1 in double overtime in front of a Baujan Field record 2,763 fans.

The 2011 season was another banner year for the Flyers who finished with a 19-4-0 record. They won a third consecutive A-10 Championship and earned a third consecutive trip to the NCAA Women's Soccer Championship. Colleen Williams was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament for the Flyers. Williams, a 2011 Hermann Trophy candidate, also repeated as an NSCAA All-America Team selection. Williams and Kathleen Beljan were both named to the NSCAA Scholar All-America Team. Six UD women's soccer players earned A-10 All-Conference honors, including three first team honorees: Beljan, Williams and Alexis Garcia. Kelsey Smigel was named second team, as well as to the All-Rookie Team. The Flyers tied for the most players on the All-Academic team with four: Beljan, Emily Kenyon, Juliana Libertin and Williams.

In 2010 the Flyers continued to break new barriers. For the first time in program history, a UD women's soccer player was named to the Hermann Trophy Watch List when junior Kathleen Beljan was tabbed with the honor. Beljan was also named to the NSCAA Scholar All-America Team. Sophomore Colleen Williams was named an NSCAA All-American. Williams was second in the NCAA rankings in total points.

UD went 19-3-1 in 2010, defended their A-10 regular season and tournament championships, and made it to the Second Round of the NCAA Championships. The solid defense was ranked fifth in the NCAA in shutout percentage (.609), 10th in goals against average (.550), while the potent offense was ranked 24th in the nation. Dayton's final RPI was 19. The Flyers claimed four of the five 2010 Women’s Soccer All-Conference individual accolades, as voted on by the league’s head coaches. Colleen Williams was named Offensive Player of the Year, Kathleen Beljan was selected as the league’s Defensive Player of the Year and Jerica DeWolfe claimed Midfielder of the Year, while Mike Tucker earned the nod as Coach of the Year. UD led the way with five first and second team selections. Williams, Beljan, and DeWolfe were also all selected to the A-10 first team, along with goalkeeper Lisa Rodgers. Sophomore defender Kelsey Miller was a second team pick for the Flyers. Dayton also had two All-Rookie Team selections in forward Juliana Libertin and midfielder Sarah Senoyuit.

The Flyers went 15-0-6 during the 2009 regular season, marking the first ever unbeaten season for the program. The Flyers earned a NCAA berth and First Round win in addition to winning both the Atlantic 10 regular season and tournament titles. The Flyers played in eight overtime matches, and broke the school record for shutouts with 15. Both the offense and defense flourished. Dayton scored 49 goals and allowed their opponents just 10, ranking 27th in the nation in scoring offense (2.13) and the defense ranking nationally as well; second in goals against average (.406), fifth in save percentage (.886) and seventh in shutout percentage (.652). The 2008 squad played with true grit and poise on its way to a 15-6-1 record and helping Tucker reach a huge milestone. The Flyers earned a league record 13th consecutive trip to the Atlantic 10 Women's Soccer Championship and dealt Fordham a 2-1 loss in the semifinals to give Tucker his 200th career victory. He went on to be named the Ohio Coach of the Year, while junior Mandi Bäck, a three-time First Team All-Atlantic 10 selection, was named the Ohio Player of the Year.

In 2004, Dayton made its fifth NCAA Championship appearance, won its eighth A-10 regular season crown and its fifth A-10 tournament title. UD, which was ranked 20th in the final top 25 poll, set a school record with its 20-2 mark. The Flyers also took the nation's longest winning streak - a team-record 20 games - into the Big Dance.

After playing an incredibly aggressive, top 25 schedule in 2003, UD went 14-6-2 (5-0-1 at home). UD won both the Atlantic 10 regular season and tournament championships - winning both in the same season for the fourth time. The Flyers made their third straight NCAA appearance and fourth in five years. Dayton finished the season ranked No. 22, scored an impressive tie with No. 6 Virginia, 1-1, at home and also battled No. 10 California, No. 19 Clemson and No. 23 Ohio State - all away from Baujan Field.

Although the 2002 Flyers missed an opportunity to capture the A-10 Tournament crown on their home soil, UD's 17-3 record against a very difficult schedule was rewarded with an at-large NCAA berth.

The 2001 campaign came as a shock to many and a surprise to most. After a rocky 2-5 start, the Flyers rallied off an electrifying and then-school record 15-straight wins, carrying them all the way to the Sweet 16 of the Women's College Cup. UD swept its conference slate, going a perfect 11-0-0. UD blanked its first and second round opponents in the NCAA Tournament - Maryland, 1-0, and Miami, 2-0, to reach round three. The Cinderella Flyers finally met their match, falling 3-1 to #3 UCLA in Los Angeles in the Sweet 16. UD ended with a No. 16 national ranking. Tucker's efforts earned him his first A-10 Coach of the Year honor.

In 2000, the Flyers captured their fourth A-10 Regular Season title with a 9-1-0 mark in conference and 16-5-0 overall.

Tucker's 1999 squad turned in what was then the most successful season in team history, winning a then-record 18 games and earning a berth in the NCAA Tournament. The '99 Flyers were named the All-Ohio Division I Team of the Year, Tucker was named the All-Ohio Coach of the Year.

In 1998, UD surfaced with a 14-5-2 overall record and its second A-10 Regular Season title with a 9-1-1 mark.

Tucker's 1997 squad tied a then-school record with 16 victories.

The 1996 campaign came as a surprise to many. The Flyers finished 13-9-0 overall, winning the A-10 West Division Regular Season title. UD shocked the conference again by beating nationally-ranked and perennial conference power Massachusetts for the A-10 Tournament title. Tucker earned All-Ohio Coach of the Year honors.

Tucker took the helm in 1995, the same year the University of Dayton entered the Atlantic 10 Conference.

Tucker goes back to the roots of the UD women's soccer program. His daughter Lori played for, while Tucker was an assistant for, UD's first women's soccer head coach, Tom Schindler. When Schindler was succeeded by Bill Glisson, Tucker remained with the program as the top assistant. Tucker followed Glisson to become the school's third women's head coach and the sport's first full-time head coach.

Tucker, a 1969 graduate of the University of Cincinnati, coached the Cincinnati Cardinals club team for nine years (1983-1991), compiling a record of 310-52-34. The Cardinals were the Ohio South state champions twice and runners-up on three occasions. They were league champions eight times and won 27 major tournament championships in the nine-year span that Tucker was coach. He has been a state ODP coach for more than 20 years and is currently the coach of the U-16 age group. Tucker and his wife Chris live in Cincinnati and have two daughters - Traci, who graduated from UD in 1995 with a degree in Biology, and Lori, a former UD women's soccer player who played for the Flyers from 1989-1991.

Mike Tucker's Career Record