Marywood University Athletics

Andrew Smith

During his tenure, Smith’s teams have registered six seasons with at least 10 wins and reached the conference playoffs on five occasions.  His 2008 team captured the 2008 CSAC Championship to advance to the NCAA tournament for the first time in program history while his 2009 team captured the regular season title and finished as Conference runner-up.  Over the past three years, the Pacers have gone 24-2-4 in league play. 

From 1998-2002, Smith built the women’s soccer program from scratch and compiled a 43-44-2 record, leading the program to a Conference playoff berth in 2001. From 2001-2002, Smith's teams went 27-11-1. During that time, Smith produced a Conference Co-Rookie of the Year (Lindsay Pappas, 1999) and a Conference Player of the Year (Rebecca Grubb, 2002).

Following two seasons away, Smith returned to the Pacers’ sidelines in 2005 and promptly led the program to a 7-10 record and another Conference playoff berth.  That five-game turnaround (Marywood was 2-15 in 2004) ranked 14^th best in all of NCAA Division III. For his efforts in resurrecting the program, Smith was recognized by his peers as the 2005 Conference Coach of the Year.

In 2006, the Pacers continued that turnaround and finished at 10-7 and in 2007 the Pacers finished third in the conference with an 11-3-4 overall record (6-1-3 PAC).  Marywood captured the Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC) Championship in 2008 and earned the program’s first ever berth into the NCAA Division III National Tournament. The 2008 women’s soccer team joined the 1986-87 women’s basketball team as the only teams to have reached NCAA post-season play in Marywood history.

Marywood finished the 2008 season with a 13-5-3 overall record and ranked first in the CSAC with a 9-1 mark.  Also in 2008, the program produced their first-ever NSCAA Regional All-American and another Conference Player of the Year in defender Andrea Barker and the Conference Tournament MVP in goalkeeper Meghan Coyle. Smith was once again recognized as Conference Coach of the Year in 2008.

In 2009, the Pacers established a school record with a 15-game unbeaten streak.  After starting 0-2, Marywood went 14-0-1 over their next15 games which included a 9-0-1 mark in conference regular season play.  Marywood placed five players on the Conference’s First Team, the highest in program history.  Marywood also swept the Conference’s “Special Awards” as Smith picked up his third Coach of the Year honor while senior Lisa Hanselman was named the Player of the Year and freshman Olivia Habicht took home Rookie of the Year honors.  Marywood lost in the Conference title game in overtime to give the Pacers a Runner-up finish.  The Pacers’ scoring offense ranked 12^th in the nation while their defense ranked 82^nd in the nation for goals against average (0.894 goals against average).  Marywood’s 14-3-1 record ranked them 21^st in the nation with a .806 won-loss-tied percentage.   

The holder of a USSF “B” license and NSCAA Premier Diploma, Smith’s teams have earned numerous distinctions on and off the field, including six NSCAA Team Academic Awards (2002, 2005- 2009) and three NSCAA Team Ethics Silver Awards (2007- 2009).  Smith’s players have also earned numerous individual honors both on and off the field, highlighted by NSCAA All-Region selections for Andrea Barker (2008, 2009) and Lisa Hanselman (2009) as well as NSCAA College Scholar honors for Marissa Ruda (2007), Barker (2009) and Hanselman (2009). 

As Assistant Director of Athletics and Recreation for Communications, Smith and the Sports Information office are responsible for compiling and disseminating statistics, results and releases to media, the conference office and the NCAA. In addition, Smith and the Office of Sports Information maintain the athletics website and athletic archives and nominate student-athletes and coaches for Conference, Regional and All-American athletic and academic awards.

A 1997 graduate of King’s College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science, Smith obtained his M.S.S. degree with a concentration in Sport Management from the United States Sports Academy in 2005.

Smith at Marywood (year-by-year):

Assistant Coach
Tony Roma
570.961.4724

Anthony Roma begins his first season as Assistant Coach with Marywood University’s women’s soccer team after serving a year as a volunteer coach with the men’s team.  Roma played the final two years of his collegiate career in a Pacers’ uniform after a two-year stint at Broome Community College in New York. 

A native of Endicott, NY, Roma transferred to Marywood prior to the 2007 season in which he scored four goals and added one assist and was named to the All-PAC Sportsmanship Team.  Named a team captain for the 2008 season, Roma helped lead the Pacers to a school record 12 wins and scored the game-winning goal in Marywood’s first ever playoff victory, a 1-0 win over Centenary College in the first round of the Colonial States Athletic Conference playoffs.

During his two seasons, Roma played in 34 games and finished with nine goals and four assists for 22 points.  Roma graduated from Broome with an Associate’s Degree in Liberal Arts and from Marywood with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Psychology and a minor in Business Administration.  He is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in School Counseling here at Marywood. 

Volunteer Assistant Coach - Goalkeeper Coach
Elizabeth McGill
570.961.4724

Originally from Elmira, New York, McGill and her fellow 2006 graduates enjoyed an "up and down" collegiate career while with the Pacers.  In McGill's freshman year, the Pacers went 14-5 and posted the best record in school history.  However, over the next two years the team faced numerous challenges and injuries and stood at 2-15 after the 2004 season.  In McGill's senior year, however, the Pacers enjoyed the 14^th best turnaround in the entire country and went 7-10 and made the conference playoffs with a 5-5 record. 

After graduating from Marywood, McGill went on to St. John's University in New York where she earned her Master's Degree in American History in 2008.  She currently teaches in Marywood’s Health and Physical Education department while pursuing a doctoral degree in Higher Education Administration. 

"Liz has been a great asset for our staff and goalkeepers.  Her knowledge of Marywood University will certainly help us with recruits and she knows our system and style of play.  Having a coach specifically dedicated to training our goalkeepers on a daily basis has had and will continue to have a tremendous impact on our program" Coach Smith said. 

McGill’s training and presence has already resulted in several accolades for goalkeeper Meghan Coyle as Coyle earned Conference Tournament MVP honors in 2008 and followed with a First Team All-Conference selection in 2009.