Steve Wieczorek was named the head men’s soccer coach at The College of Saint Rose on May 16, 2022.

Wieczorek is taking over a Golden Knights program that made its fifth Northeast-10 Conference postseason appearance in nine years in 2021. Saint Rose advanced to the conference semifinals, went 10-6-1 overall, and recorded its highest finish ever by finishing third on the strength of an 8-3-1 NE10 mark.

Wieczorek, who will wrap up his third year as the head coach of AFC Mobile of the National Premier Soccer League this summer, has achieved success throughout each stop of his career.

“Steve is an incredible coach and I’m thrilled for the opportunity our Golden Knights have to benefit from his experience, talent, work ethic and passion for recruiting and developing student-athletes. I’d like to thank Coach John Ciano for his tremendous leadership over these past six years. He paved the way for Steve to build off the continued success of Saint Rose men’s soccer. This is a huge win for us and we can’t wait to get started, “said Lori Anctil, Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics, at the time of his appointment.

Wieczorek also weighed in on his arrival to New York’s Capital Region.

“I would like to thank Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics Lori Anctil for the trust she has shown in me to become the next head men’s soccer coach. It is an honor and privilege to be able to represent Saint Rose and lead the men’s soccer program. I am very excited to work with this talented group of student-athletes, to build upon the tremendous foundation laid by Coach Ciano, and to fulfill our goal of winning the conference championship and advancing in the NCAA Tournament.”

Wieczorek has led three programs to NCAA Tournament berths. He previously spent seven years at fellow NCAA Division II institution Spring Hill College in Mobile, Ala. He also has seven years of NCAA Division I coaching experience with stops at Duquesne, Oregon State, and nearby Siena.

Wieczorek is the all-time winningest coach at Spring Hill, which qualified for its second straight Gulf South Conference postseason tournament in 2019 spending several weeks ranked in the United Soccer Coaches top-25 National Poll.

The Badgers were the only team in GSC history to win the regular-season and conference tournament championships with an unblemished league record (13-0) during the 2018 season. Spring Hill went 17-2 overall and advanced to the NCAA Tournament during the program’s first season of NCAA postseason eligibility. The squad’s 17 wins represent a school record, while five players garnered All-Conference accolades, including forward Alex Lipinski who was named to the United Soccer Coaches first-team All-America Team.

In addition, Tilman Schober was honored as the 2018 College Sports Information Directors of America Google Cloud Academic All-American® of the Year.

All that success with the Badgers merely reflects Wieczorek’s previous accomplishments.

Oregon State enjoyed an historic campaign in 2014 when the Beavers advanced to the NCAA Tournament second round behind the program’s first NCAA Tournament win in school history. The OSU roster featured Kirby Shelton who was a Hermann Trophy semifinalists, an All-American, and the PAC12 Player of the Year. Shelton was subsequently selected by NYCFC with the number-two overall pick in the 2015 MLS Super Draft. The Beavers also recorded 12 victories that year, the most since 2003.

Wieczorek was in charge of assisting the head coach in all aspects of the Duquesne program in 2013. The Dukes posted their best Atlantic 10 record since 2009 and advanced to the A-10 Championship Quarterfinals while capturing a United Soccer Coaches Team Academic Award.

Wieczorek spent five years at Siena, the last two as the top assistant coach, before taking up residency at Duquesne. The Saints enjoyed the most success in school history throughout Wieczorek’s time there behind four consecutive Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Tournament appearances. He also monitored the academic progress of the Saints, who were ranked among the top-15 in team grade-point-average among all Division I schools in 2012.

As a student-athlete, Wieczorek was a goalkeeper at Fairfield University where he led the Stags to four MAAC Tournament appearances and a pair of MAAC finals appearances. He immediately began his coaching career following his graduation as the team’s Goalkeeper Coach.

He then went to the University of Bridgeport as an assistant coach in 2006. He helped the Purple Knights advance to the NCAA Division II Tournament, a United Soccer Coaches Top-25 ranking, the East Coast Conference semifinals and final in 2006 and 2007 respectively, and an aforementioned NCAA Tournament berth. He coached nine All-Conference and four United Soccer Coaches All-Region honorees at Bridgeport.

Wieczorek graduated magna cum laude from Fairfield in 2004 with a double major of English Literature and Communication. He owns a master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Fairfield and a Ph.D. in Philosophy, Sport Management from Troy University. He also holds a United Soccer Coaches Premier Coaching Diploma, an Advanced National Goalkeeping Diploma, and a Performance Analyst Diploma; along with a pending UEFA B Coaching License, and is an ISPAS Level-1 Accredited Applied Performance Analyst.

What they’re saying about Head Coach Steve Wieczorek:

“Coach Wieczorek is ambitious and does not give up. He is 100 percent behind the team and does everything possible for his program to be successful. He knows how to deal with adversity and he does not back down. He always has your back on and off the field and he gives you back everything that you put in. Under him, I learned to focus and improve my strength and work on my weaknesses, which helped me become a better player that can deal with any circumstances not only on the soccer field, but also a personal and professional environment.”

Tilman Schober: Former Player, Spring Hill College

“Steve has a growth mindset when it comes to self-development. Constantly striving to better himself, he is a student of the game. His understanding of how to assemble a winning team is evident from his tenure as head coach of an NCAA Division II college program. The combination of his recruitment, and his in-game management transformed a program that notoriously struggled to muster a win, into one that went into 11-0 in conference. Steve has an ability to network with coaches, players and recruitment agencies, and has given opportunities to hundreds of international players to play while continuing their education in the U.S.”

James Beeston: Co-Founder & Head of Supplement Training, Beestera Soccer Training/Former Siena College Player

“Saint Rose is getting an outstanding soccer coach in Steve Wieczorek. He is a superb tactician with an eye for identifying players with a high developmental ceiling. Given his skills, intellect and passion for the game, I have no doubt he will elevate the Saint Rose program to new heights.”

Jim Hall: Former Director of Athletics, Spring Hill College

“This is great news for The College of Saint Rose and the Golden Knights! Coach Wieczorek returns to the Northeast after very successful stints at Spring Hill College and in the PAC-12 during our time together at Oregon State. He’ll bring a broad knowledge of the game along with his tenacious recruiting while holding high academic standards.”

Steve Simmons: Assistant Athletic Director, Linfield University

May 17, 2022