Dec. 21, 2007

AMHERST, Mass. - University of Massachusetts men's soccer coach Sam Koch has been named a finalist for the NSCAA/adidas National Coach of the Year Award after leading the Minutemen to their first-ever College Cup appearance this season. After being picked 10th in the Atlantic 10 Preseason Coaches Poll, Koch led UMass to the Atlantic 10 Tournament Championship title, the second-ever NCAA Tournament appearance, and a historic run all the way to the NCAA National Semifinals. The Minutemen finished the season with a 17-8-1 overall record which was a school record for wins.

Koch is in his 17th season at UMass and is the winningest coach in the program's 75-year history. His career record in Amherst stands at 187-124-29, while his overall coaching record is 245-177-45 games. Koch notched his 175th career win at UMass on Oct. 6 at Hartford - a 1-0 victory.

Among active NCAA coaches, Koch is tied with Bret Simon of Stanford for 24th in career wins.

The Concord, Mass., native has led the Minutemen to three regular season Atlantic 10 titles, two Atlantic 10 Tournament titles, two NCAA Tournament appearances, and one NCAA College Cup appearance. During his tenure in Amherst, the 23-year head coaching veteran has produced two All-Americans in Jeff Deren (2001, 2002) and Zack Simmons (2007), a College Cup All-Tournament selection, a two-time Atlantic 10 Offensive Player of the Year, two Atlantic 10 Rookies of the year, two Atlantic 10 Tournament MVPs, 17 All-New England selections, 53 All-Atlantic 10 players, 25 Academic All-Atlantic 10 honorees, and 20 Atlantic 10 All-Tournament picks.

Koch is a three-time Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year selection and in the running for National Coach of the Year for the first time in his career. In his time at UMass, the Minutemen have had 12 winning seasons and average over 10 wins per season.

Assistant coach Jon Davy was earlier named East Region Assistant Coach of the Year and is now in the running for the National Assistant Coach of the Year as well.

The regional coaches, along with those of NCAA teams that advanced to the their respective College Cup, now are eligible for NSCAA/adidas National Coach of the Year honors. Those recipients will be announced at the Association's annual Awards Banquet, to be held Friday, Jan. 18, in conjunction with the NSCAA Convention in Baltimore, Md.