Stacey Rider Appointed As First Women's Soccer Assistant Coach At Ferris State

Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University women's soccer program, which had a record-breaking campaign this past fall, has announced the addition of the program's first assistant coach as Stacey Rider was appointed to the newly-created position.

Rider, who served as a volunteer assistant for the Bulldogs this past fall, will assist with all aspects of the FSU program moving forward, including recruiting, player development, scouting and more under current head coach and the 2015 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Coach of the Year Andy McCaslin.

"First, I'd like to thank the administration for their support of the soccer program and women's athletics at Ferris State," McCaslin said. "It's an exciting time for the program. We're building something extremely special here and being able to add someone of Stacey's caliber to the staff on a permanent basis is extremely fortunate. 

"She did a tremendous job as a volunteer for nearly a year, helping in all aspects of our program," he added. "I'm confident much of our team's success and individual accolades this past season came as a result of having another strong and qualified voice with us."

In Rider's first season with the Bulldogs this past fall, Ferris State set a new school record with 14 victories overall and placed the highest in school history with a runner-up league regular season finish. FSU also set a new school mark with nine league wins and posted a school all-time best 12-match unbeaten streak at one point this year.

Additionally, the Bulldogs also set a school record for most shutouts in a campaign (8) and most consecutive shutouts (4) while being ranked among the top six in the Midwest Region. FSU did not drop a match after the opening weekend of the season until mid-October. Ferris State was also the only GLIAC school to receive the 2015 National Soccer Coaches Association of American (NSCAA) Team Ethics and Sportsmanship Award.

Before joining the FSU program, Rider served as the assistant women's soccer coach at the University of Saint Francis (Ind.) where her responsibilities included goalkeeper training, planning and implementing training sessions, game plan development, recruiting, scouting, video analysis and more under head coach Christy Young. During her time at USF, she helped lead the Cougars to three-straight winning seasons and three consecutive league semifinal appearances. A total of 27 players earned Academic All-Conference laurels during her time at Saint Francis, three were All-Americans and 29 more tabbed as NAIA Scholar-Athletes.

In addition to her collegiate coaching background, Rider has also been active as a coach for various clubs and organizations, including serving as the Director of Goalkeeping and/or a head coach for the Alliance Academy, the Fort Wayne United FC club, the Michigan Lions WPSL team and the Fort Wayne Sport Club among others.

A NSCAA certified coach, Rider also previously served as a school nurse for Fort Wayne Community Schools along with being a staff registered nurse at Fort Wayne's Lutheran Children's Hospital and was the Director of Nursing as the East Noble School Corporation in Kendallville, Ind. She is certified as a CPR Instructor and in first aid by the American Heart Association.

Rider graduated with highest honors from the University of Saint Francis in 2007 with a degree in nursing and was a Parkview Health Award recipient. She played collegiately for USF and was a three-time NAIA Honorable Mention All-American from 2005-07. The collegiate standout also was named to the 2005 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District Team, earned NAIA Player of the Week honors and was both a three-time all-conference and all-region choice. Rider also received NAIA/Daktronics All-America Scholar-Athlete recognition multiple times and set a school record for most shutouts (13) in one season while helping Saint Francis to three conference tournament championships, two regional semifinal appearances along with a berth in the regional final as a senior.

"Stacey was an elite college player, she's a proven recruiter with an eye for talent and an excellent on the field coach with field players and goalkeepers, but most importantly she really connects with our student athletes in a positive way. I'm excited to continue working with her as we build upon our success this past fall," said McCaslin.