Concordia University Wisconsin

Mequon, WI 53097

Wisconsin Midwest

Private Small Developing team

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Coaches

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Ryan Middendorf

Ryan Middendorf returned to his alma mater in 2003 and has since become the winningest women’s soccer coach in program history. Since taking over the program, Middendorf's teams have consistently produced double-digit win seasons and competed for conference championships. Middendorf enters his 21st season at the helm of the program in 2023.

The All-Conference honors are nothing new to the Falcons under the tutelage of Middendorf. Since the NACC began (2006), he has coached 51 players who have received First Team All-Conference honors. He also has 31 players who were Second Team selections.

The 2022 season saw the Falcons tie the school record for wins as they posted an overall record of 17-4-2 and claimed their second-ever NACC Tournament Title with a 1-0 win over Illinois Tech to send CUW to the NCAA Division III Tournament for the first time since he 2019 season. Selena Esten, Karoline Haugland, and Carmen Rowe all claimed All-NACC first-team honors while Brooke Braga, Isabel Downs, and Jordan Lafferty received All-NACC second-team honors. Downs and Lafferty also earned CSC Academic All-America Second Team while Esten, Haugland, and Rowe all were named to the USC All-Region VIII Third Team.

The Falcons claimed another NACC Regular Season title in 2021 at 12-1-0 and a 14-4-0 overall record. Selena Esten was named the NACC Offensive Player of the Year. CUW also earned national honors with Karoline Haugland and Selena Esten earning USC All-Region honors and Jordan Lafferty claiming CoSIDA Academic All-District accolades.

The Blue and White were NACC North Division champions in the 2020-21 season. The Falcons earned six All-NACC North Division selections for the 7-1-0 campaign.

The Falcons soared to new heights in 2019, capturing a school record of 17 victories. The Blue and White also clinched their first-ever NACC Tournament title with a 2-1 victory at Dominican to send CUW to the NCAA Division III Tournament for the first time since 2004. Freshman Karoline Haugland was named the NACC Freshman and Offensive Player of the Year, while Middendorf was named the NACC Coach of the Year. Karoline Haugland was a USC All-Central Region First Team selection, while junior Allison McElwee was a USC All-Central Region Third Team selection. CUW tied the program record with seven All-NACC selections. Under Middendorf, the Falcons were the NCAA Division III Statistical National Champions in Shots on Goal Per Game at 14.41. CUW was also ranked second in the top-10 rankings in seven other categories.

The 2018 Falcons finished with an 11-10 mark and an 8-3 NACC record. CUW landed five All-NACC selections.

The 2017 Falcons reached 10 wins and posted a 7-2-1 record in NACC play, good for a tie for third in the league. Middendorf's teams have now won 10 or more matches in 11 of the past 12 seasons. His teams have also posted an impressive 132-32-8 record in conference matches during his tenure.

The 2015 season was one of the best in program history as the Falcons captured their first Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference Championship, posting a perfect 10-0-0 mark in league games. For Middendorf, it was his second conference championship, also guiding CUW to a Lake Michigan title in 2004. The Falcons won 14 games in 2015, the third time in the last four seasons they have reached at least 14 victories.

In 2015, Middendorf led a CUW team that had a NACC-record seven players earn First Team All-Conference honors. In addition, he was named NACC Coach of the Year while also coaching the NACC Defensive Player of the Year (Faith Palmreuter) and NACC Freshman of the Year (Josie Dombrowski).

In 2014 Middendorf helped the Falcons to an appearance in the NACC Tournament Championship game. CUW finished the year with a 14-6-0 record, including an 8-2-0 mark in NACC play. As is usually the case with Middendorf's CUW teams, the Falcons were outstanding defensively in 2014, recording eight shutouts.

The 2014 season also saw the Falcons net their first-ever NSCAA First Team All-Region selection, that honor going to junior Carley Pfannerstill. CUW had three players earn All-Region honors, a program record, as Brittany Klumpp was placed on the second team, while Ashley Apazeller earned Third Team honors. Apazeller became the first Falcon to be named All-Region three times in her career.

In 2012 his program finished with a 15-4-1 record, tying for the best mark in Concordia Wisconsin history. The Falcons have qualified for the NACC Tournament every season since joining the conference prior to the 2006 season.

In just his second season at the helm (2004), Middendorf led the Falcons to the NCAA Division III Women's Soccer Tournament. His 2004 team rolled through the Lake Michigan Conference and was unscored upon in league games.

Middendorf is no stranger to CUW soccer. After an outstanding high school career at Greendale Martin Luther, he competed for four years (1998-2002) for the CUW men's soccer program under current head coach Tom Saleska.

In January 2014 Middendorf was selected to the CUW Athletics Hall of Fame for his playing career.

A defensive midfielder for the powerful Falcons, Middendorf won Lake Michigan Conference All-Conference and NSCAA All-Region honors and was named team MVP as a senior. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree in physical education, along with a minor in coaching. Middendorf is currently teaching in the Health and Human Performance Department at CUW. He has a United States Soccer Federation National License.

Middendorf's coaching resume includes stints with the Cedarburg Striker Soccer Club, three years as the junior varsity coach and varsity assistant at West Bend East, and a season as the Falcon's men's assistant. He currently coaches for the Milwaukee Sport Club.

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Hannah Kaul

Hannah Kaul joined the Concordia University Wisconsin Women's Soccer team prior to the 2015 season and the Falcons instantly saw results upon her addition to the coaching staff.

In Kaul's first season as a full-time assistant coach, the Falcons captured their first Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference Championship, posting a perfect 10-0-0 mark in league play. In addition, CUW had seven First Team All-Conference performers, a NACC record.

Kaul helped the Falcons win 14 games in 2015, posting an impressive 14-2-3 overall record. She joined the Falcons staff after a successful playing career at UW-Milwaukee.

She helped the Falcons clinch a winning season in 2018, with 11 victories.

Kaul was a team captain for the Panthers during her senior season and was a part of a program that won four consecutive Horizon League Championships, resulting in four straight NCAA Tournament appearances. She also played basketball for two seasons with the Panthers.

Kaul has worked in the past as a youth soccer coach, as well as a camp instructor for Northwestern University this past summer. She coached at Butler University as a youth soccer coach during the summer of 2012, working with players ages 8-14.

Kaul graduated from UW-Milwaukee in May of 2015 with a Bachelor of Communications Sciences and Disorders Degree.

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John Saleska

John Saleska finished up his fourth season as the head coach of Concordia Wisconsin’s men’s soccer team in 2022. He previously served as the lead assistant coach with the team from 2015-2018 and was named head coach prior to the 2019 season.

In 2022, the Falcons claimed a share of the NACC regular season title with a conference record of 6-2-4 with an overall record of 9-4-5. Six members of Saleska’s 2022 squad earned All-NACC honors while Gilberto Gomez claimed CSC Academic All-District honors.

The season before, in 2021, Coach Saleska and the Falcons continued their winning ways and finished with a 9-8-1 record and another trip to the NACC Tournament.

The Falcons claimed the NACC North Division title in the 2020-21 season. The Falcons boasted a record of 6-2-1 and won the title with a thrilling 3-2 overtime win at MSOE to claim the top spot in the North Division. Sam Runyan was the NACC North Division Defensive Player of the Year and Manuel Brito was the NACC North Division Freshman of the Year.

In his inaugural year as head coach, the Falcons went 13-5-1 overall and made the NACC Tournament.

After spending time with both the Men's and Women's programs for several seasons, John Saleska transitioned to a role just with the Concordia University Wisconsin Men's Soccer program in 2015, serving as the lead assistant to his father, Tom.

The move to have Saleska work with just the men's program certainly paid dividends. The Falcons won two NACC Regular Season Championships in three seasons, posting 9-1 league records in both 2015 and 2017.

Saleska was hired as the full-time Director of Soccer Operations for both the men's and women's soccer programs in March 2012 before transitioning to being an assistant with just the men's program in 2015. He previously served as the graduate assistant coach and played four years for the Falcons, three as the starting right back. His playing resume includes three consecutive conference championships and back-to-back second-round appearances in the NCAA Tournament. Prior to that, he was a three-year varsity defender at West Bend East High School and part of that school's first-ever Little 10 championship squad. He most recently played for FC Brewers in the Majors division of the Wisconsin Adult Soccer Association.

In addition to coaching with the Falcons, Saleska is a coach for the Bavarian Soccer Club out of Milwaukee. In 2015 he captured a Wisconsin State Cup and led his team to the Midwest Regional Semifinals. Saleska holds NSCAA Advanced National and USSF 'C' coaching licenses.

Saleska's coaching experience includes three years coaching both boys and girls at West Bend United SC, a year coaching girls soccer at Milwaukee Lutheran High School, and three years as the boys and girls varsity assistant at Homestead High School.

Saleska is married to Tara and the couple has three sons: Owen and twins, Micah and Luke.

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Ben Gyuricza

Ben Gyuricza is in his ninth season as an assistant coach and his fifth year as a full-time assistant with the Concordia University Wisconsin men's soccer team.

The Falcons have seen a tremendous amount of success with Gyuricza on staff. During his tenure, CUW has captured four regular-season conference titles. During the 2016 year, Gyuricza's second season staff, the Falcons reached their first Top 25 national ranking.

Gyuricza brings 12 years of club coaching experience to the Falcons. He is now in his sixth year as a coach at Bavarians where he has coached four different boys' youth teams. In 2017, Gyuricza's U15 Boys Team qualified for the National League.

He took that same team as U16s and won the State Championship and Regional Championship. They were the first youth Bavarian team to compete in the National Tournament in 40 years. They also then re-qualified for the USYS National League again.

Gyuricza was awarded the 2019 Wisconsin Soccer Youth Coach of the Year for coaching the Milwaukee Bavarians at the U16 level. The award is given out every year to the best club coach in the state.

He is currently the head coach of the Bavarian United U19 MLS Next Academy Team, the highest level of youth soccer in the country.

Gyuricza currently owns his USSF B national license for coaching.

He played two seasons of soccer for the Falcons, including his senior year when they reached the NACC final against Dominican.

He is a graduate of Concordia Wisconsin.

Gyuricza is from Palatine, Illinois, where he went to St. Viator Arlington Heights High School.