Pellissippi State Community College

Pellissippi State CC Athletics
10915 Hardin Valley Rd Knoxville, TN 37932

NJCAA Tennessee Southeast

Public Large Developing team

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Coaches

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Mariana Diaz Lopez

Knoxville has given Mariana Diaz Lopez a lot of opportunities.

Now the former NCAA Division II soccer player and coach is in a position to “give back” to the community she says has always embraced her.

Diaz, who was a five-year women’s soccer captain at Lincoln Memorial University, has been hired as Pellissippi State Community College’s first-ever head women’s soccer coach. The college announced in November that it is adding competitive athletics starting in fall 2023, after it was accepted into the National Junior College Athletic Association in October.

“I have a love for developing players by enhancing the fundamentals of the game,” said Diaz, who most recently served as an assistant women’s soccer coach at LMU and will graduate with her Master of Business Administration in May. “I bring experience in creating training plans. I believe that challenging and improving single players will ultimately lead to team success.”

“Mariana is an exciting coach with experience in NCAA Division II Soccer,” said Pellissippi State Athletics Director Brock Evans. “She will bring a passionate and distinctive brand of soccer to the pitch. Mariana has a great proficiency in coaching the technical side of the game, and she will be able to develop a high-level technical team with a drive to compete at the highest level.”

Diaz also will be serving Pellissippi State as a student success coordinator in the college’s Stay Strong Success Center, which helps students navigate the many transitions and challenges they may encounter during their college experience. She will focus on areas such as academic planning, study skills and cultivating a sense of belonging.

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Brenna Lacaillade

Grown from travel and life experiences, Brenna Lacaillade brings a melting pot of training models and programming to help assist the Head Coach’s vision.

Brenna played for the Olympic Development Program and Division II collegiate soccer before joining the US Army as a medic. This position advanced her desire to further understand human performance in athletes. She then worked as a strength and conditioning coach in Columbia, SC where she studied injury prevention and rehabilitation.

In 2017, Brenna took on her first club coaching role in Denver, CO, and was quickly hired to design and implement sports performance programming for the boy’s organization. While coaching, she continued her work in athletic performance by leading workshops and training sessions specializing in speed and proprioception in female soccer players.

In 2022, Brenna took on a new club coaching role in Knoxville, TN. During her time, she increased her knowledge and coaching repertoire by receiving her Professional Diploma in Women’s Football Performance and her Advanced Diploma in Football Tactical Analyst.