CONWAY, S.C. – Coastal Carolina University has named Tammy DeCesare as the new head women’s soccer coach, Director of Athletics Hunter Yurachek announced today.

"We are thrilled to bring in a coach the caliber of Tammy to Coastal Carolina University," Yurachek said. "She has shown the ability to mold a team into a force within her league, as well as bringing a great knowledge of the Carolinas in her recruiting work. With her experience as both a player and a coach, she is someone who we believe will elevate our women's soccer program at the top of the Big South Conference, both athletically and academically, for many years to come."

"I am extremely excited about this opportunity at Coastal Carolina University," DeCesare said. "The academic excellence, athletic traditions and campus location are all factors that make Coastal a school of potential and promise. The women’s soccer program has had championship level success in the past and I’m excited to become a part of it. I would also like to thank Western Carolina University for the wonderful experiences I’ve had and for the opportunity to lead that women's soccer program."

DeCesare comes to Conway from Western Carolina University, where she had compiled a 58-36-13 mark in five seasons as head coach, including five consecutive winning seasons, the 2005 and 2008 Southern Conference Championships and the league's 2005 and 2008 berth to the NCAA Championship. In an environment that is intense but family oriented, DeCesare promotes both academic and athletic excellence, as her teams were also recognized nationally for their academic prowess by receiving the Team Academic Award from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) all five years.

Last season, the Catamounts put together another winning season, going 8-6-5 and 5-3-3 in the SoCon. The squad also earned the NSCAA Team Academic Award, while having 12 student-athletes named to the Southern Conference All-Academic team for the fall semester.

In 2008, the Catamounts made their second NCAA appearance after posting two penalty-kick wins in three tournament contests, including a PK victory over top-seeded UNC Greensboro in the SoCon Championship. They also posted a 9-2-0 conference record, the best in Western Carolina’s 11-year history, along with their third-ever ranking in the Soccer Buzz post-season Regional Poll.  Academically, the squad boasted a SoCon-best 3.39 GPA.

During the 2006 and 2007 seasons, DeCesare-led teams continued to shine, garnering top 20 regional preseason rankings and competing against nationally and regionally ranked non-conference opponents such as Nebraska, Clemson, Duke, Wyoming, NC State and East Carolina.  Western Carolina was ranked in the top ten nationally in cumulative team GPA boasting cumulative GPA's of 3.61 and 3.53 respectively in those two seasons.

In her first season at Western Carolina, the 2005 DeCesare-led squad set a multitude of school records, as well as the best turnaround in the entire NCAA during the season. They achieved a school-record 18 wins, with13 of those being shutouts. Seeded fourth after the regular season, The Catamounts earned the school's first ever Southern Conference tournament title, becoming the lowest seed to ever win the SoCon women's soccer championship.  DeCesare led the Catamounts in their first-ever appearance in the NCAA College Cup Championship, facing 17-time National Champion, North Carolina. For her efforts, DeCesare was recognized by Soccer Buzz as the Regional Runner-Up Coach of the Year for the Southeast following the 2005 season.

DeCesare was an assistant coach at UNC Wilmington for six seasons underneath Paul Cairney prior to her stint at Western Carolina.  She hepled the Seahawks to a 59-50-5 overall record as well as the team being was recognized for three consecutive seasons with the NSCAA Team Academic Award. DeCesare earned her Masters of Education from UNCW in 2002, completing the program with a 4.0 GPA. In addition to her collegiate endeavors, DeCesare was very active in youth soccer in the Wilmington community, coaching with Cape Fear Youth Soccer and the Port City Storm Soccer Club.

DeCesare helped Catawba College become a nationally-ranked program as a four-year starter for the Indians. She helped Catawba capture a pair of South Atlantic Conference (SAC) Tournament titles and a SAC regular-season conference championship during her playing career. Serving as team captain, she earned All-Conference honors during her senior campaign. Additionally, DeCesare also played basketball at Catawba, duplicating her efforts as team captain for the Indians' hoops squad and helping lead them to the NCAA Division II National Tournament. Upon her graduation in 1996, DeCesare played two years of semiprofessional women's soccer for both the Hampton Roads (Va.) Piranhas and the Carolina Speed of the United States Interregional Soccer League (USISL).

DeCesare is also involved in the development of youth soccer with both the North Carolina and Region III Olympic Development Program for the last eight and six years, respectively.  With one of her recent NC ODP teams, she coached several All-Region team players and three National Pool/Team selections in their respective age groups. On the Region Staff, she has accompanied two different teams on foreign tours to play international competition- one to Costa Rica in 2007 and one to Denmark and Sweden in the 2008 spring season.

DeCesare's Collegiate Coaching Experience

Year            School                           Position            Overall         Conference
1998-99     Hamline University              Head Coach          n/a             n/a
1999-2005    UNC Wilmington             Assistant Coach 59-50-5     n/a
2005            Western Carolina            Head Coach      18-6-0          6-4-0
2006            Western Carolina            Head Coach      10-8-3          6-3-2
2007            Western Carolina            Head Coach      9-8-3           4-4-3
2008            Western Carolina            Head Coach      13-8-2          10-2-1
2009            Western Carolina            Head Coach      8-6-5           5-3-3
D-I Head Coaching Record                Five Years          58-36-13            31-16-9

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