Amherst College

Amherst, MA 01002

Massachusetts Northeast

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Coaches

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Jen Hughes

2022 was Jen Hughes's 19th season at the helm of the Amherst College women's soccer program which has become one of the premiere teams in NCAA Division III. Since taking the reins in 2004, Hughes has led Amherst to a 27-64-35 overall record, four NESCAC titles, and 13 NCAA Division III Tournament appearances. She is the all-time winningest coach in program history, surpassing legend Michelle Morgan with her 208th win on Oct. 30th, 2021.

Hughes, along with assistants Su DelGuercio and Jeff Huffman, were named the United Soccer Coaches Region I Coaching Staff of the Year in 2022.

In 2015, Hughes directed the Purple & White to a 11-3-3 overall record with a 6-2-2 ledger in NESCAC action en route to securing the team's 16th consecutive conference postseason berth. The Purple & White also earned its fifth straight NCAA postseason appearance and 15th overall following the 11-win campaign.

During her time in Western Massachusetts, Hughes has led Amherst to several outstanding seasons, but the 2011 campaign was one of the best in program history. The Purple & White set several team records while winning their first 20 games, notably claiming the NESCAC title before cruising through the first three rounds of the NCAA tournament. Amherst finished its incredible season at 20-1-0 after falling to eventual champion Messiah in the quarterfinals, with Hughes getting recognized as the NESCAC and NSCAA New England Coach of the Year.

A 1997 graduate of Colgate University, Hughes spent two seasons as an assistant coach at her alma mater before earning master's degrees in both business administration and sport management at UMass-Amherst. She was one of the best women's soccer players in Colgate history, leading the Division I Red Raiders to three consecutive Patriot League Championships and earning countless individual honors. Graduating as Colgate's all-time leader in goals (40), assists (26) and points (106), Hughes was a 1997 NCAA Woman of the Year nominee and a winner of the ECAC Merit Medal for excellence in academics and athletics.

Following her senior season, Hughes was selected to play on the Region 1 team at the 1998 U.S. National Soccer Festival and earned a spot on the W-League team for the New York Magic of the United Systems of Independent Soccer Leagues (USISL). She went on to play professionally for Tyreso FF of the Damallsvenskan Futbol League in Stockholm, Sweden, and was one of 250 players world wide invited to the inaugural Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) combine and player draft. Hughes is one of only two players in Colgate women's soccer history to have her jersey number retired.

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Su DelGuercio

Su DelGuercio is entering her sixth year as the Women's Soccer Assistant Coach.

DelGuercio spent the last two years serving as a faculty member and coaching various sports, including girls varsity soccer, at the Berkshire School in Sheffield, Mass, and prior to that had an extensive run as an assistant coach at the University of Redlands (California).

With Redlands, DelGuercio helped oversee a Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) regular season championship in 2015 and a post-season conference championship in 2014, which led to a spot in the NCAA Round of 32. From 2012-2016, DelGuercio helped coach an NSCAA All-American, 6 NSCAA All-West Selections, one CoSIDA Academic All-American and 11 All-Conference selections, including a SCIAC Player of the Year and a SCIAC Newcomer of the Year. In 2015, she was part of a Redlands staff that was named SCIAC Coaching Staff of the Year.

At the same time, she earned two graduate degrees from Redlands, an MBA in 2014 and a Master of Higher Education in 2016.

DelGuercio stayed on at her alma mater for one year after graduation to serve as an assistant coach, helping the Mules to a 7-7-1 record and a NESCAC postseason appearance.

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Jeff Huffman

Assistant Coach Jeff Huffman looks forward to his fifth season at Amherst in 2022. This will be Huffman’s fifth season as men’s goalkeeper coach and fourth in the same role for the women’s team. In total, Huffman has seen 13 different goalkeepers on his teams receive individual postseason accolades in 18 seasons of collegiate soccer.

It was a special 2021 season for Huffman. The men’s side advanced to the national title game as his goalkeepers combined on the season for the most shutouts (15) and lowest goals against average (0.41) in all of Division III men’s soccer. Additionally, Kofi Hope-Gund was named to the NCAA All-Tournament Team. On the women’s side, Mika Fisher was named the United Soccer Coaches First Team All-America goalie in her debut collegiate season.

During the 2019 season, the men’s goalkeepers recorded the lowest goals against average and had the highest save percentage in NESCAC play. After the 2018 season, Bernie White was tabbed by New England Soccer Journal as one of the top three Division III freshman goalkeepers in all of New England. On the women’s side, the 2019 season saw the goalkeepers combine to record the fewest goals allowed and record the highest save percentage for the entire season of all NESCAC squads. After the 2018 & 2019 seasons, women’s goalkeeper Antonia Tammaro was named Second Team All-NESCAC.

Previously, Huffman was part of the staff at rival Williams College for parts of 10 seasons. During his time at Williams, Huffman was part of a coaching staff that guided three teams to the national semifinals while seeing seven players move on to the professional ranks during his time on staff. At one time or another at Williams, he served as a volunteer, second and first assistant coach. His past on-field duties included serving as goalkeeper coach and reserve team head coach. During his time as goalkeeper coach, he oversaw the development of Nick Armington, who is one of only three NCAA Division III goalkeepers to ever make an MLS regular season roster, and Than Finan. Finan was tabbed as an All-American after the 2012 season, the first All-American goalkeeper produced at Williams in a quarter century. In addition to those two, goalkeeper Peter Morrell was named Second Team NSCAA All-New England North at the conclusion of the 2013 season and Christian Alcorn was named Second Team NSCAA All-New England North at the conclusion of the 2016 season. As reserve team head coach, Huffman posted a .600 winning percentage over four seasons.

Outside of Williams, Huffman’s resume includes a head coaching stint at NJCAA Division I Garden City Community College in Kansas as head men’s and women’s coach (2004-2006) and as head women’s coach/director of soccer operations (2007-2009). He had a winning percentage of .625 as head men’s coach, while seeing his women’s program make the Region VI Tournament four out of five seasons. In total, six of his players moved on to the NCAA Division I level. His assistant during that time, Stephen Gorton, went on to be named one of the top 12 NCAA Division I assistants in the country by CollegeSoccerNews.com in spring 2016 and is currently the head men’s soccer coach at NCAA Division I Purdue Fort Wayne of the Horizon League.

In addition, Huffman spent the 2010 season as the men’s goalkeeper coach at NCAA Division I University at Albany. In his one season on staff, he coached Trinidad and Tobago men’s national team goalkeeper Adrian Foncette. Foncette was in between the sticks for the T&T squad that knocked the U.S. men’s national team out of FIFA World Cup qualifying in October 2017.

Huffman is a licensed coach through the USSF, while having earned his Advanced National Diploma and Goalkeeping Level 3 Diploma through the United Soccer Coaches organization. He is employed full-time at Interprint in Pittsfield and resides in North Adams.

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Justin Serpone

Having shaped Amherst into one of the premier teams in NCAA Division III men’s soccer, Head Coach Justin Serpone returns to the sideline for his 15th season in his 16-year tenure in 2022 (the 2020 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic).

Serpone also serves as the director of Amherst LEADS, Amherst's leadership development program that features a variety of symposia, workshops, speakers and interactive experiences to educate the College's student-athletes about becoming strong, ethical and influential leaders.

Since taking the reins in 2007, Serpone has amassed a superb 231-33-40 overall record. His .822 winning percentage ranks fourth among all active coaches in the NCAA, regardless of division. Amherst has won six NESCAC championships (2008, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016, 2022) and played in the NCAA Division III Tournament in all 15 seasons of Serpone's tenure, reaching the round of 16 in each of the last 13 straight seasons, as well as six quarterfinals, four semifinals, three national championship game appearances and the program's first national championship in 2015.

Serpone has guided the Mammoths to the last two NCAA Division III national championship games, reaching the title tilt in 2019 and 2021. The Mammoths were ranked second in the final United Soccer Coaches Division III poll in 2019 and 2021.

The 2019 campaign was also a season of program records as the 19 wins sits as the highest win total in a season in Amherst history. Additionally, Amherst's 58 goals were the most goals ever scored in a season by the Mammoths.

German Giammattei ’22 became the program's first-ever National Player of the Year and tied the NESCAC goalscoring record with 26 goals in the 2019 season, then became the first player ever to win back-to-back Division III National Player of the Year awards in 2021.

2015 was a historic season that culminated in the program’s first-ever national title. Serpone’s squad opened the memorable campaign undefeated and untied in its first 14 games of 2015 and earned a first-round bye in the NCAA Division III Tournament. Amherst earned three straight victories at home to secure a trip to the national semifinals in Kansas City, Missouri. Amherst battled SUNY Oneonta to a 0-0 deadlock and eventually won the thrilling contest on penalty kicks, 4-3, to advance to its first-ever national championship match, where Amherst completed the amazing journey with a 2-1 victory over Loras College.

Guiding his team to an 18-1-2 record (9-0-1 NESCAC), Serpone was named the 2015 NSCAA, D3soccer.com, and HeroSports.com Division III Coach of the Year.

In 2014, Serpone guided Amherst to an impressive 14-1-6 ledger and a 7-1-2 mark in conference play. Amherst extended its conference unbeaten streak to 37 games dating back to 2011 and spannign four seasons (Oct. 29, 2011 to Oct. 18, 2014). The stretch, which included NESCAC tournament games, resulted in the seventh-longest run of that kind in NCAA Division III history.

An historic 2012 campaign saw Amherst finish with an unblemished 17-0-3 mark, closing out the season having never trailed in a match. Racking up a 56-3 goal differential, Amherst enjoyed the best season of goal prevention in NCAA history, regardless of division. In 2013, the Purple & White increased their unbeaten streak to 40 straight games (30-0-5) dating back to 2012, which still stands as the ninth-longest streak in Division III history, en route to their second consecutive appearance in the Division III quarterfinals. Amherst earned its first ever No. 1 national ranking during the year and finished with an 18-1-2 overall mark.

The 2007 season marked Serpone’s debut at Amherst, and his team was immediately in the spotlight after rattling off 11 consecutive wins on the way to a 15-2-1 mark. The 2008 season brought even more success as his team advanced to the national semifinals for only the second time in program history (first time since 1997). The Purple & White ended the 2008 season with a No. 3 ranking in the NSCAA national poll and has maintained its elite status ever since.

Prior to his arrival in Amherst, Serpone served as the assistant men’s soccer coach at Duke University in 2006, helping to lead the Blue Devils to an 18-4-1 record, the ACC regular season and tournament championships, and a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Prior to Duke he worked as a head assistant coach at Lafayette College (2001-02) and Northwestern University (2003-05).

Serpone served as president of the student body and earned a B.A. in economics at Drew University while competing for nationally-ranked men’s soccer team as a goalkeeper. Since graduating from Drew, Serpone has earned an “A” coaching license from the United States Soccer Federation as well as a Premier Diploma from the National Soccer Coaches Association (NSCAA).

In keeping with the academic spirit of Amherst and the NESCAC, Serpone has completed five graduate degrees:

Master of Arts in Sports Administration from Northwestern University (2010)

Master of Business Administration from Bay Path University (2012)

Master of Arts in Higher Education from Bay Path University (2012)

Master of Science in Labor Studies from the University of Massachusetts (2020)

Master of Science in Leadership and Negotiation from Bay Path University (2020)

He is currently enrolled in three more Master’s Degree programs:

Sociology (with a focus in Diversity and Inclusion) at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs

Creativity and Critical Thought at the University of Massachusetts

Strategic Fundraising and Philanthropy at Bay Path University

A proud native of Winchester, Massachusetts, Serpone and his wife, Angela McMahon-Serpone, reside in Hadley with their daughters, Lily and Annabelle, and their son, Tyson. Angela is a faculty member and head girls lacrosse coach at Deerfield Academy and previously spent 12 seasons as head women's lacrosse coach at the University of Massachusetts, winning eight Atlantic 10 championships. Both Justin and Angela rank among the all-time top 10 winningest coaches by percentage in their respective sport and division. Angela was also named head coach of the first-ever Italian national team, which competed at the 2017 FIL World Cup with Serpone serving as co-head coach.

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Alex Ortega

Amherst College men's soccer coach Justin Serpone recently announced the hiring of Alex Ortega as assistant coach of men's soccer.

Ortega comes from Randolph Macon College, where worked as an assistant coach since prior to the 2019 season. The Yellow Jackets were 24-15-3 in his time. In 2021 RMC went 5-1-3 in conference play, its least league losses in one season since 1999.

Prior to his time with Randolph Macon, Ortega spent one season at Clark University. During his tenure with the Cougars, the team led the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) for goals, assists and points. Clark's 3.06 goals-per-game were a Top 15 mark in the nation.

Before Clark, Ortega served as the assistant men's soccer coach for three seasons at his alma mater Colby-Sawyer College in New London, New Hampshire. While with the Chargers, Ortega was part of a staff which consistently won more than ten games a season and had stellar North Atlantic Conference records. Colby-Sawyer's offense was ranked in the Top 4 in the NAC during his tenure.

In the club ranks, Ortega has experience with the New England Futbol Club in Massachusetts and with Lightning Soccer Club in New Hampshire. His NEFC U14 boy's team won the New England Premiership last fall. Ortega coached all levels from U14 to U17 while with Lightning Soccer Club.

Ortega graduated from Colby-Sawyer in 2015 with a bachelor's degree in Sport Management. While with the Chargers, he was named All-Conference as a junior and senior and served as a team captain in his senior year. He played in all 80 games across his career, including 62 starts. He finished his career in the Chargers record book with the second-most points (72), second-most goals (28) and fourth-most assists (16) in program history. He ranked 27th in the nation for game-winning goals in his senior year, collecting five on the season.

Ortega is a native of Milton, Vermont.