Aaron Brunner was hired as the sixth head coach in the history of the Patriot women's soccer program on December 20, 2023.

A native Virginian with almost 25 years of coaching experience, Brunner won a National Championship with Florida State. An assistant coach for two seasons (2022, 2023), Brunner was part of the Seminoles’ staff that was named the 2023 United Soccer Coaches Coaching Staff of the Year.

The staff led FSU to the greatest season in program history as the Seminoles captured its fourth National Championship while finishing the season undefeated for the first time in program history. The title completes an extraordinary run for the Seminoles in the NCAA Tournament where they outscored their opponents 21-1.

In two seasons at FSU, the staff posted a 39-3-4 record with two ACC Championships, two ACC Tournament Championships, two College Cup appearances and the 2023 National Championship.

The team of coaches helped produce a school record five All-Americans as well as seven All-ACC honorees, the ACC Offensive Player of the Year, the ACC Freshman of the Year, two MAC Hermann Semifinalists, one MAC Hermann Finalist and a Honda Sports Award Finalist.

In his first season as an assistant coach at Florida State, Brunner helped lead the Seminoles back to the College Cup with a 17-3-3 record and was named part of the 2022 Atlantic Region Staff of the Year. Brunner coached two All-Americans on the offensive side of the ball (Jenna Nighswonger and Jody Brown). 

Prior to Florida State, Brunner served as the ECNL Director, Director of Operations, and Head Coach for Richmond United/Strikers for more than 10 years.

Brunner served on the coaching staff full-time for the girls ECNL before serving as the Richmond United Director of ECNL Operations. He coached multiple Richmond United ECNL Girls Teams, and holds his US Soccer A License, US Soccer Talent Scout License, and US Soccer National Youth License. Brunner was the ECNL National Selection Director and is US Soccer National Coaching Education Instructor.

In 2003, Brunner began coaching youth locally in Virginia with the Prince William SI where he was named the 2009 National Youth Coach of the Year, USYSA Region I Coach of the Year, and VYSA State Coach of the Year while at PWSI. 

At the national level, Brunner worked with the United States Women’s Senior National Team as an opponent scout. He has worked with multiple youth national teams within the United States Soccer Federation serving as the Talent ID Scout for the Women’s Youth National Teams (u14, u15 and u17) from 2015 through 2018. 

During that time Brunner also served as the U.S. Soccer Training Center Program Liaison for Virginia. He was an opponent scout for the u15 and u17 Women’s National Team during their CONCACAF Championships.

Hailing from Prince William County in Northern Virginia, Brunner played varsity soccer for four years at C.D. Hylton High School.  The Bulldogs won two VHSL AAA State championships, three Regional Championships, and four District championships. During one season, team claimed the #1-ranked high school program in the country by NSCAA (now United Soccer Coaches). 

The standout received accolades throughout high school, including NSCAA All-South, VHSL 1st Team All-State, Washington Post 1st Team All-Met, and the VHSL All-Star Game Most Valuable Player. After graduating, he was a four-year starter for New Hampshire, playing multiple positions, mainly as a winger or attacking center midfielder. He earned All-Tournament Team accolades at Clemson, Penn State, Vermont, and New Hampshire. 

After completing his collegiate career and graduating from the University of New Hampshire with a B.A. degree in psychology in 2000, Brunner signed with the New Hampshire Phantoms and played one season. Despite his passion for playing soccer, Brunner pursued coaching joining the Seacoast United Soccer Club staff based out of Hampton, New Hampshire, where he earned NHYSA State Coach of the Year.

Brunner’s wife, Kristin Portell, played for George Mason from 2002-2005. They have two children, Owen and Sophie. Aaron likes to spend time with his family and go to sporting events while supporting his Washington sports teams. He plans to live in Gainesville, Va., with his wife and children.

WHAT THEY'RE SAYING ABOUT AARON BRUNNER:

“Aaron is a homerun hire for George Mason. He is a Virginia guy with deep soccer roots in that neck of the woods. Aaron’s knowledge of the game is extremely high-level. His ability to organize a team on both sides of the ball is also tremendous. And most importantly, Aaron will help to facilitate the wholistic growth of his players. We are sorry to see Aaron go because of the impact he had on our success over the last two seasons at FSU, but we can’t wait to watch him elevate Mason women’s soccer into a consistent contender for A-10 Championships.” – Brian Pensky, Florida State University Head Women’s Soccer Coach

“Aaron brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the George Mason sideline. In addition to working with FSU at the highest level of Division 1 women’s soccer, he has experience developing some of the top student-athletes in the country while working in the club game.   Aaron is an excellent coach and an even better human and it was wonderful to see all of his hard work pay off this year when the Seminoles won the National Championship!  These student-athletes will undoubtedly grow and flourish under his leadership” – Erica Dambach, Penn State University’s Head Women’s Soccer Coach

“A fantastic hire for the Patriots! Aaron is a proven creator of winning environments that attracts talented players and for fielding attacking, successful teams.”  -- Jay Howell, Executive Director, Richmond Strikers and Richmond United