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Randy Waldrum
Randy Waldrum enters his sixth season at the helm of the University of Pittsburgh women’s soccer program in 2023. He was announced as the fourth head coach in Pitt women’s soccer program history by Director of Athletics Heather Lyke on December 19, 2017. Waldrum signed a new contract that will ensure his leadership of the Panthers through at least the 2027 season. The legendary women’s soccer coach ranks in the top-20 in NCAA Division I history in career head coaching victories (449).
He led the Panthers to their most historic season yet in 2022. Pitt overcame several key injuries throughout the season to set program records for overall wins (14) and ACC wins (5) and qualified for both the ACC Championship and NCAA Championship fields for the first time in program history. Pitt opened the year 6-0 to match the best start to a season in program history. The Panthers reached the Sweet Sixteen in their first NCAA Tournament appearance after knocking off Buffalo in the First Round, 1-0, and Georgetown in the Second Round, 2-1. The team set single-season program records for points (138) and goals (47). Pitt finished the season at No. 12 in the United Soccer Coaches Rankings, with the Panthers earning a top-25 ranking in each of the final seven weeks of the organization's poll.
Freshman defender Katie Zailski and senior midfielder Landy Mertz represented Pitt on the 2022 United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division I Women's All-Atlantic Region Teams, with Zailski being named to the Second Team and Mertz being named to the Third Team. The duo also earned All-ACC honors, as Mertz was named to the Third Team while Zailski was named to the All-Freshman Team. The Panthers also excelled in the classroom, placing six student-athletes on the 2022 Academic All-District® 2 Team, selected by College Sports Communicators. Representing the Panthers were Mertz, sophomore midfielder Bri Hilsenteger, senior goalkeeper Caitlyn Lazzarini, sophomore defender Ashley Moon, sophomore forward Sarah Schupansky and junior midfielder Emily Yaple. Mertz was then named to the 2022 College Sports Communicators Division I Academic All-America Second Team, becoming the first Panther to garner Academic All-America status.
He was announced as the fourth head coach in Pitt women’s soccer program history by Director of Athletics Heather Lyke on December 19, 2017. The legendary women’s soccer coach ranked ninth in NCAA Division I history in career head coaching victories (442) and 16th across all NCAA divisions while also ranking fifth among active NCAA Division I head coaches in 2022.
Waldrum was appointed the head coach of the Nigeria Women’s Senior National Team, the Super Falcons, on Oct. 5, 2020, a role he serves in addition to his coaching role at Pitt.
Waldrum led the Panthers to their second-straight 11-win season in 2021 as Pitt finished 11-7 overall with a 4-6 ACC mark. Pitt posted victories in each of its first five games for the second year in a row. With 12 ACC points, Pitt finished a program-best in the league standings by tying for ninth place. The Panthers also tied the school record for single-season wins set in 2021 as well as ACC wins set in '15. Pitt boasted a high-powered attack, outscoring the competition by a 41-22 count.
Amanda West enjoyed another stellar campaign under Waldrum's watch in her junior season. She was named to the United Soccer Coaches' All-Atlantic Region Third-Team. The only Panther to be named to multiple all-region teams, West garnered a selection for the third-straight year. Picked to the All-ACC Third-Team, West earned All-ACC honors for the third time in her career despite missing seven games. West ranked second in the ACC in game-winning goals (five), tied for fifth in goals (10) and tied for sixth in points (23).
Pitt also excelled academically under the tutelage of Waldrum as a school-record six Panthers were named to the All-ACC Academic Women's Soccer Team, including West, Kate McCay, Landy Mertz, Athalie Palomo, Sarah Schupansky and Emily Yaple. West became the first in program history to receive the academic distinction three times, having received the honor every season at Pitt, while McKay, Palomo and Yaple are the only other Panthers to garner the award twice. West added yet another accolade by being selected to the CoSIDA Academic All-District Two Team, becoming the first Panther in program history to earn the honor.
Waldrum followed up his successful fourth season as head coach of the Panthers by guiding Nigeria to a 1-0 win over Cameroon in the quarterfinals of the African Women's World Cup of Nations (WAFCON) tournament in Casablanca in July 2022. The victory allowed the Super Falcons to secure one of four spots for the African nations in the 2023 Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. When Niagara plays in the 2023 Women's World Cup, Waldrum will join North Carolina's Anson Dorrance as the only active Division I Women's Soccer head coaches to lead a team into the World Cup.
In just his third season, Waldrum guided the Panthers to a school-record 11 wins despite playing two less games in the regular season than a traditional year due to the pandemic. Pitt earned its first-ever ranking in the United Soccer Coaches’ Poll at No. 12 on Sept. 22 and stayed in the poll for an additional week. The Panthers won their first six games of the season, the best start in program history. Pitt earned the record despite being on the road for five of the games, setting another school record for most wins away from home in a single-season.
Waldrum saw West become the first Panther to be named to the United Soccer Coaches’ All-Atlantic Region First-Team and All-ACC Second Team. West ranked third in the nation in points (33) and fifth in goals (13), breaking her own school single-season records while becoming the school’s leader in career points (62) during the fall. Four Panthers were named to the All-ACC Academic Team, McKay, Palomo, Yaple and West, which matched the Panthers’ combined selections for their previous eight years in the conference.
Waldrum oversaw a marked improvement from the team in 2019 with the team finishing 10th in the ACC standings with eight points (2-6-2) and an overall record of 5-10-3. The team snapped a three-year winless streak (0-25-3) in ACC play with a 2-1 overtime win over Boston College at Ambrose Urbanic Field, then defeated eventual Sweet 16 qualifier NC State, 2-1, the following week.
Picked to finish second-to-last in 13th place in the ACC Preseason Coaches’ Poll, the Panthers proved to be a tough out for everyone in the best conference in the country. They led NCAA tournament runner-up North Carolina, 1-0, late in the second half, limited No. 6 Florida State and a top-five scoring offense in the nation to one goal and took both No. 17 Clemson and Wake Forest into overtime on the road after trailing in both games.
Bringing in one of the best recruiting classes in program history and Waldrum’s first guiding the program, the newcomers made a huge impact to the turnaround. As one of the nation’s youngest programs in the country, Pitt had nine freshmen combined to start 92 matches in the season.
West etched her name all over the Panthers’ record book as a freshman. She broke the school’s single-season points record (29) and tied for goals (10) and assists (nine) with four game-winning goals. She became the first Panther to receive All-ACC honors with spots on the third and freshmen teams and the second one to earn a spot on the United Soccer Coaches’ All-Region Team with a third-team nod.
Waldrum saw unprecedented success in his tenure at the helm of the perennial powerhouse Notre Dame women’s program. In his 14 seasons, he led the Fighting Irish to two national championships, capturing the College Cup title in 2004 and '10. His teams won eight Big East Tournament titles and appeared in eight NCAA Final Four games in that span.
A two-time national coach of the year (2009 by Soccer America; '10 by NSCAA), Waldrum was the first coach in NCAA history to lead a team to a national title in his/her first season with a program. He wrapped up his tenure at Notre Dame with a mark of 292-58-17 (.819).
Waldrum joined the Fighting Irish after beginning a program at Baylor, building the Bears into a threat in the Big 12 from scratch. In three seasons with Baylor, Waldrum guided the Bears to an overall mark of 46-14-3 after spending 1995-96 starting up the program. He was named the Big 12 and NSCAA Region Coach of the Year after a 15-5-1 record in 1998, as the Bears reached as high as 12th in the nation en route to a Big 12 Conference title.
Prior to his tenure at Baylor, Waldrum spent six seasons at the helm of the Tulsa program, serving as head coach for both the men’s and women’s programs from 1989-94. He led the men to a record of 66-33-6 and the women to a mark of 61-36-9.
In his playing career, Waldrum was a standout at Midwestern State University, earning all-district honors in each of his four seasons in Wichita Falls, Texas. He graduated in 1981 with a degree in physical education and a minor in political science. He moved on to play professionally with the Los Angeles Skyhawks and Indianapolis Daredevils of the American Soccer League.
In addition to his impressive resume in the NCAA, Waldrum also spent time in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), becoming the head coach of the Houston Dash expansion team in January of 2014. In his three seasons with the Dash, Waldrum coached seven national team players who laced up with their respective countries in the Rio Summer Olympic Games, including Team USA members Carli Lloyd, Morgan Brian and Pittsburgh native Meghan Klingenberg.
Waldrum has also served as the head coach of the United States U-23 National Team since 2012, winning the Four Nations Cup in 2012 and '13 as well as the Three Nations Cup in '12.
Waldrum and his wife, Dianna, have one son, Ben, who currently serves on his staff as associate head coach.
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