St. Cloud, Minn. – St. Cloud State University Director of Athletics Heather Weems announced today the appointment of Gretta Arvesen as the Huskies next head women's soccer coach.

Arvesen was an assistant soccer coach at Central Michigan University last season, an NCAA Division I institution. Her responsibilities included Director of Internal Operations and Director of the CMU Soccer Academy.

"I am so excited for the opportunity to lead this program, said Arvesen. "I look forward to joining the St. Cloud State community and will strive to develop a sustainable championship culture on and off the field. I want to thank Heather Weems for her commitment to the growth of the Husky women's soccer program. I can't wait to get started because I believe there is so much potential for this team."

Arvesen becomes the sixth women's soccer coach in the history of the program and replaces Becky Heiberger-McCabe who resigned last spring.

"I am excited to welcome Gretta Arvesen to St. Cloud State as our new women's soccer coach," said Weems.  "Gretta has been part of winning programs as both a player and assistant coach. She has a vibrant personality, brings great passion and expertise to the field, has a strong recruiting network, and is committed to the development of our young women as students, athletes, and citizens. With our season just a few weeks away, she will arrive in her running shoes as she looks to make her mark on Huskies Soccer."

At Central Michigan, Arvesen assisted in analyzing, developing and implementing the women's soccer program. As Director of Internal Operations she was responsible for coordinating academic support, strength and conditioning, compliance, sports information, sports science, marketing, camps and clinics, facilities and equipment. As Director of CMU Soccer Academy, she was responsible for programming Elite ID, Overnight and Day Camps and Soccerfest.

Prior to joining the Central Michigan soccer staff, Arvesen was on the soccer staff at Minnesota State University, Mankato, serving as an assistant coach from July 2008 to January 2013, and taking on the interim head coach assignment from January to April 2013. While at Minnesota State, she also served as the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) liasion and an assistant professor and instructor in the New Student and Family Programs Department and Human Performance Department.

As the assistant coach for the Mavericks, Arvesen was the recruiting coordinator, managed and directed team operations, supervised academic progress, assisted with budget management, directed MSU Soccer Academy camp programs, directed and implemented community service and outreach events, and assisted with the development and implementation of program-level fundraising.

The Minnesota State University soccer program made four NCAA tournament appearances during her coaching stint, notched 74 wins, won two Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) tournament titles, had five All-Americans and three Capital One Academic All-AmericaÒ team members, earned five straight National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) team academic awards and back-to-back NSCAA Silver Team Sportsmanship and Ethics Awards.
Arvesen has been involved in numerous community and volunteer activities in Michigan and Minnesota, and has participated in professional development programs since 2007.

A native of Pine Springs, Minn., Arvesen played collegiate soccer at Creighton University from 2003 to 2007, earning four letters. She was on the SAAC Committee and Team Leadership Council. The Bluejays won two Missouri Valley Conference Championships and made two NCAA tournament appearances.

After graduating from Creighton with a degree in mass communication and public relations, Arvesen was a graduate assistant coach at South Dakota State University for the 2007-08 season. She has a master's degree in educational leadership from Minnesota State University.

The 2014 St. Cloud State soccer season gets underway on Aug. 24 with an exhibition game against the College of Saint Benedict at Husky Stadium. The regular season begins on Sept. 5 in a non-conference match at Northern Michigan University in Marquette, Mich.

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