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Lenoir-Rhyne University

Hickory, NC 28603
North Carolina Southeast
Private Small Developing team
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Dean Ward

Dean Ward was named the Women's Soccer Head Coach on April 22, 2022 and led the Bears to a SAC Regular Season Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance in his first season while being named SAC Coach of the Year.


Ward coached four players to be named All-Region selections and Elin Hansson was named a First Teamer. Hansson was named the SAC Freshman and Player of the Year in her first year with the Bears and was one of seven players to be named to the All-Conference team. The Bears beat No. 12 Catawba 4-1 in the regular season finale to earn a SAC Regular Season crown, the 8th in the past 12 years. Ward then led the Bears to a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament and defeated SAC foe Limestone 1-0 in the first round. The Bears then took on top-seeded Columbus St. and lost by a final score of 1-0. The Cougars would eventually advance all the way to the National Semifinals.


Ward comes to LR from the University of Dayton where he has been the assistant coach and recruiting coordinator since 2017. Ward helped the Flyers earn Atlantic-10 Tournament berths in every season he was with the program and helped develop seven A-10 Conference Rookie team players. Additionally, Ward coached seven players to all A-10 Conference selections and seven to the all A-10 Academic Team. Alexis Kiehl was named A-10 Offensive Player of the Year in 2017-18 with Itala Gemelli picking up the A-10 Rookie of the Year in 2020-21 and the league's Player of the Year in 2021.


Prior to arriving at Dayton, Ward served on staff at the University of Tennessee under head coach Brian Pensky for five years. While on staff, the Volunteers compiled a 50-36-16 record including three 10+ win seasons. Ward assisted in recruiting classes touted as No. 3 (2015) and No. 11 (2014) in the nation.


Ward also had a stint at Loyola Marymount University for the 2011 season and enjoyed success at Marymount College (NAIA) as the head coach, leading the Mariners to The Peace Cup Championship in his first season. He served as an assistant coach for both the men's program and the women's program for two years before taking over as the head coach for the women's program in 2010.


Ward also coached in youth soccer as a Director of Player Development for Manhattan Beach Sand & Surf Soccer Club in Los Angeles, CA and coach of FC Alliance ECNL teams based in Knoxville, TN. Ward served as an assistant coach in 2015 with the USYS Region III ODP team and served as a regional staff coach for Region III in 2014 and 2015.


A native of Birmingham, England, Ward graduated from Manchester Metropolitan University in 2006 with a bachelor's degree in sport science with coaching and exercise science. Ward holds an NSCAA Premier coaching diploma and NSCAA National Goalkeeping Diploma.

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Zandy Soree

Head Women’s Soccer Coach Dean Ward has announced the hiring of Zandy Soree as the program’s assistant coach. Soree comes to Hickory after a standout career at the University of Central Florida and a stint in the 2021-22 UEFA Women’s Champions League.


"I am excited to have Zandy join the LR family, her knowledge of the game will be a huge asset to the program and in particular our players,” said Ward. “Zandy has an intelligent soccer mind having been around high level environments at the collegiate, professional and international level along with working under some of the best coaches in the country. Zandy’s soccer resume speaks for itself but more importantly she is a wonderful human being. Her ability to relate and connect with our student-athletes will be invaluable and I have no doubt she’ll prove to be a fantastic addition to the LR program.”


At UCF, Soree earned Second Team All-Conference honors as a senior and netted three game-winning goals including the winner against No. 22 SMU. She also earned a spot on the American Athletic Conference All-Rookie Team in 2016. In her four years with the Knights, Soree played in 67 matches and finished with 14 goals and 11 assists, including a career-high seven goals and 16 points as a senior.


Following her collegiate playing career, Soree signed a contract with the Orlando Pride of the NWSL in 2020 and also spent some time on trial with the Houston Dash.


In September 2021, Soree joined Breioablike of the Icelandic Urvalsdeild and competed in the UEFA Women’s Champions League group stage. Soree played in all six games.


Soree’s from Weston, Fla. And went to American Heritage HS prior to enrolling at UCF.

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Reaghan Duval

Head Women’s Soccer Coach Dean Ward has added Reaghan Duval as the program’s graduate assistant for the Fall of 2023 . Duval comes to Hickory after a four year career at Campbell University and her grad season at D'Youville University in Buffalo, NY.


"I am thrilled to have Reaghan join our staff and be part of the LR family, said Ward. "Reaghan will work primarily with the goalkeepers but will also be involved in all aspects of the internal and external operations of the program. Reaghan is young, energetic and knowledgeable coach who will be a huge asset to the program and in particular our players. We are lucky to have two quality "up and coming" young female coaches on our staff in Reaghan and Zandy, who serve as great role models to our team."


At Campbell, Duval helped the Fighting Camels to the 2021 Big South Conference Tournament Championship and also the 2022 Big South Regular Season Conference Championship.


In the summer of 2022, Duval played for the Greenville Liberty in the USL W League.


After her playing career at D'Youville, Duval spent the following season as a volunteer assistant coach for the Saints. This past summer Duval also worked as an assistant and GK coach for the FC Carolinas W-League team in their inaugural W-League campaign.


Duval is from Waxhaw, N.C. and went to Goshen Central HS prior to enrolling at Campbell.

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Carlos Rubio

Vice President of Athletics Kim Pate has announced the elevation of Carlos Rubio to the men's soccer head coach. Rubio has served as a goalkeepers coach since 2018 and has been a member of both the men's and women's soccer coaching staffs while serving as the interim women's head coach a year ago. Rubio replaces Jack Winter who moved on to become the assistant coach at Stanford and becomes the eighth coach in the 39-year history of LR men's soccer.


"I'm excited for Coach Rubio to step into the head coach role as he has been an integral part of the success of our soccer programs over the past four years," said Pate. "He brings tremendous passion, knowledge of the game, strong leadership skills, recruiting experience, and most importantly he embodies our core values and commitment to developing our student-athletes on and off the field. Our men's soccer program has become a highly regarded perennial contender and I am confident that Coach Rubio will not only sustain success but will take the program to the next level,"


"I would like to thank Kim Pate and everyone in the LR Athletic Department for trusting in me and my vision for the Men's Soccer Program," said Rubio. "These past five years at Lenoir-Rhyne have been extremely special for me and I am beyond thrilled to lead a program that I feel very passionate about. I want to thank everyone that has helped me prepare for this opportunity, especially Coach Jack Winter and Coach Gary Higgins. I cannot wait to kick things off."


Rubio has helped the Bears to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 2021 and 2022 and led the Bears to the No. 2 seed and tournament hosts this past fall. In 2019, Rubio helped LR to upset wins over No. 9 Barry – the defending national champions – and No. 2 Young Harris.


Rubio and the Bears advanced to the SAC Tournament Championship game during the 2020-21 COVID season and two of the five NCAA Tournament appearances in program history. The 2022 Bears also won the SAC Championship for just the fourth time in team history and the first time since 2006.


Rubio also helped guide the women's team to unmatched heights. In 2021, the Bears advanced to a Final Four. With Rubio's assistance, the Bears went to a pair of NCAA Tournaments and won the SAC Championship in the shortened COVID 2020-21 season. Rubio coached Grayson Cameron to a Second Team All-Conference season as a goalkeeper during the COVID season and her 0.77 GAA that season ranked fifth in program history. He also coached GK Charlotte Warner to an Honorable Mention All-Conference selecting and the sixth-best GAA in program history in 2019.


"Carlos has been one of the most influential members of our program over the last five years," said Winter. "His commitment to self-development and professional growth is remarkable. He has an unmatched determination to be the best coach he can be and is inspirational to those under his guidance. However, Carlos's passion for developing well-rounded young men is what makes him truly unique. He pours so much effort and energy into his coaching practice and mentorship. The young men of the LR men's soccer program are incredibly fortunate to have someone who cares so deeply about their future. I am so excited to see where Carlos can take this team in the coming years."


"From the moment Carlos stepped foot on Lenoir-Rhyne's campus in 2018, both soccer programs got better," said Gary Higgins, former LR women's soccer head coach and LR men's soccer All-American. "Carlos is one of the best young coaches in the country and most importantly he is an incredible human being. He has dedicated so much time and energy towards LR Soccer and nobody is more deserving of this opportunity. Not only is our men's soccer program going to benefit from having Carlos as their head coach, but Lenoir-Rhyne University and the local Hickory community will too. As a proud alum, I am so excited that Carlos will be leading our men's soccer program moving forward."

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Jorge Morales

Assistant Coach

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Miguel Montano

Volunteer Assistant Coach

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