Rob Fulton is in his 18th season as the head women’s soccer coach at Shippensburg University in 2023 and in his 20th season overall with the Raider program.

Fulton, the 2013 PSAC and NSCAA Atlantic Region Women’s Soccer Coach of the Year, has transitioned SU women’s soccer into a consistently competitive program and established several team firsts along the way.

On Oct. 15, 2017, Fulton achieved his 100th career head coaching victory with the Raiders – a 3-0 road victory at Millersville. Two years earlier, on Oct. 7, 2015, Fulton became the all-time coaching wins leader for Shippensburg University women’s soccer.

Under Fulton’s direction, the SU women have advanced in the PSAC Tournament, qualified for the NCAA Tournament and won a match in the NCAA Tournament – all tasks never before achieved at Shippensburg until his arrival.

Since taking over as the head coach in 2006, Fulton has guided the team to four PSAC Tournament appearances and averaged more than eight victories per season. In the 12 seasons prior to Fulton’s arrival, the Raider program boasted just one playoff appearance (2002).

Fulton has a history of solid recruiting – having mentored 20 different all-conference athletes in 13 seasons. SU has had 29 total All-PSAC selections during his tenure.

Among his top players have been goalkeeper Beth Long – who recorded a school-record 24.5 shutouts and tied the school record with 493 career saves – and Gayle Kuntzmann – a four-time All-PSAC performer who ranks second in SU history with 46 career goals. Kuntzmann played for the Boston Aztecs of the Women’s Professional Soccer League after her graduation.

Most recently, Fulton guided the Raiders to a 6-6-6 overall record during the 2022 season, missing out on a playoff spot on the final day of the regular season.

In 2015, Shippensburg finished with an 11-7-1 overall record and 9-6-1 PSAC record – a four-win improvement – to finish sixth in the PSAC. SU reached the PSAC Tournament for the second time in a three-year stretch.

The 2013 season was one of the most memorable in school history, as the Raiders posted 12 victories and achieved several milestones. In SU’s 20th season of women’s soccer, Fulton’s team advanced in the PSAC Tournament for the first time, qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the first time, and later won its first NCAA Tournament game.

Shippensburg claimed its first-ever undefeated regular-season home mark (8-0-1) in 2013, finishing 12-6-1 overall. SU also attained its first national ranking in more than seven years, as its No. 22-ranking at the end of the regular season was just the fifth in school history. The Raiders later entered the NCAA Tournament ranked No. 24 in Division II after having briefly dropped out of the rankings.

Another fascinating aspect of the 2013 season was that SU did not suffer back-to-back losses – the first time that feat has ever been achieved in school history. The Raiders also had a flare for the dramatic, going undefeated in five regular-season overtime games with four victories. 

In 2010, Shippensburg posted a 10-8-1 record and qualified for the conference quarterfinals with a balanced scoring attack. SU had 14 different players score at least one goal while adding six more tallies to its total output from the previous season. The 35 goals scored by the Raiders were the most in seven years.

In 2008, Fulton guided the Raiders to an 11-8-1 record – at the time SU’s most successful season in 11 years. The campaign marked the most wins for the Raiders during Fulton’s tenure until 2013 and the most for Shippensburg since the team finished 13-6 in 1997.

The 2007 season, Fulton’s second guiding the Raiders, featured one of the best starts in program history. Shippensburg won five of its first six games to warrant a No. 13 ranking in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/Adidas national rankings, marking just the second time in program history that the team was nationally ranked. The 2007 squad was also named an NSCAA All-Academic team.

In 2006, Fulton inherited a Raider roster that had lost nine veterans to graduation, including a goaltender that had played every minute of every game for her entire career and an entire group of forwards from the previous year. Undaunted, Fulton brought in a wealth of talent and improved the offense by 10 goals, finishing with a 9-8-2 regular season record – a three-game improvement over the previous season – and SU made its first PSAC Tournament appearance since 2002.

In addition to its prowess on the field, Fulton’s 2006 squad also excelled with its sportsman­ship and maturity. Shippensburg was named as one of just 57 men and women’s soccer teams from the NCAA Divisions I, II and III to earn a NSCAA Team Ethics Award. The Raiders were one of just 34 teams through­out the NCAA and one of two from the PSAC that received the Silver Award for receiving fewer than five yellow cards and no red cards.

Fulton arrived at Shippensburg in 2004 and has been an assistant coach for the men’s soccer team since his arrival. He was the assistant women’s coach for two years before earning the chance to helm the Raiders in 2006.

Before Shippensburg, Fulton had two years of head coaching experience at the College of the Southwest, a NAIA school located in Hobbs, New Mexico. Fulton totaled a 22-16-1 record as the head coach of the women’s program from 2002-03. He also served as an assistant professor of physical education.

In 2003, Fulton guided the Lady Mustangs to a 13-6-1 record and the Red River Athletic Confer­ence (RRAC) regular-season title and an appearance in the conference championship game. He was also honored as the RRAC Coach of the Year.

Originally from Fort Collins, Colorado, Fulton came to the College of the Southwest from Austin, Texas where he was coaching with the ASC Eagles Soccer Club. Fulton began his coaching career in Colorado where he was the girls’ junior varsity coach at Love­land High School for two years beginning in 1994.

Fulton was then the head boys’ and assistant girls’ varsity coach at Poudre High School for three years where he helped lead the girls to a state champion­ship and earned the Northern Conference Boys’ Soccer Coach of the Year in 1996. In addition to his experience at the high school level, Fulton also served as the soccer trainer for the Eagles Soccer Club in Round Rock, Texas from January 2001 to February 2002.

Fulton started his playing career at William Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri and finished at Grace­land College in Lamoni, Iowa where he was a team captain and named his team’s Most Valuable Player as a senior. He holds a bachelor’s degree in liberal studies with a concentration in wellness program management from Graceland in 1992.

In 1999, Fulton received his master’s degree in edu­cation along with elementary and physical education certifications from Southwest Texas State University. Fulton is also a NSCAA and USSF licensed coach.

At Shippensburg, Fulton has compiled a 122-129-27 record in his 17 seasons.

Fulton lives in Carlisle with his wife, Allyson. The couple have two children: Austin and Addison.

Fulton At-A-Glance

Shippensburg University

Year     Overall            Conference      Postseason

2022    6-6-6                5-5-6

2021    5-11-2              5-9-2               

2020    No season, COVID-19 pandemic

2019    8-10-0              6-10-0

2018    7-10-1              5-10-1

2017    6-11-1              5-11-0

2016    10-7-1              8-7-1

2015    11-7-1              9-6-1               

2014    7-7-3                6-7-3

2013    12-6-1              10-5-1              PSAC Semifinals, NCAA Second Round

2012    6-9-3                4-8-2

2011    5-10-3              3-9-2

2010    10-8-1              7-7-0                PSAC Quarterfinals

2009    6-9-3                3-6-3

2008    11-8-1              4-7-1

2007    8-12-0              5-7-0

2006    9-9-2                6-4-2                PSAC Quarterfinals                 

Total   122-129-27      86-109-23

College of the Southwest

Year     Overall            Conference      Postseason

2003    13-6-1              N/A                  RRAC Finals

2002    9-10-0              N/A                  RRAC Semifinals

Total   22-16-1            N/A