ALEX MENDOLIA NAMED NEW WOMEN'S SOCCER HEAD COACH

3/6/2023 10:00:00 AM

Staten Island, NY - It was announced today that the College of Staten Island Department of Athletics has named Alex Mendolia the new Women's Soccer Head Coach. Mendolia, who arrives with over ten years of coaching experience, becomes the sixth head coach in the history of the program. He takes over for Brendan Guzman who left the program following the conclusion of the 2022 season and has assumed his coaching duties effective immediately.

Mendolia was grateful for the opportunity he has been given to become the Dolphins' next Head Coach, and is excited to implement his vision for the future of the program. "It is my honor to be named the next Head Coach of the Women's Soccer program at CSI," he said. "I would like to thank Director of Athletics Chase Licata and the search committee for the opportunity and for believing in my vision and goals for Women's Soccer. I am excited to begin leading the program in the coming seasons and will be committed to ensuring the players have a great environment to succeed on and off the field at the College of Staten Island.

Mendolia has spent well over a decade as a part of an NCAA soccer program prior to arriving at the College of Staten Island. This includes both his time as a player and several coaching stops on his way to CSI. His collegiate playing career spanned four years at Division III Farmingdale State College where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management Technology / Sports Management. He also spent the final season of his playing career as a captain of the Rams Men's Soccer Team and earned a share of the team lead in goals scored that year. Once his playing career was over, he transitioned into the role of Assistant Coach with the Rams where he spent one year from 2011-2012.

After departing Farmingdale State in 2012, Mendolia landed another assistant coaching role with Division II LIU Post. There he served as Assistant Coach for both the Men's Soccer and Women's Soccer team. During his tenure with the program, he contributed to several conference championships, NCAA Tournament appearances, an East Regional Championship and #1 national rankings for Men's Soccer in 2012 and 2013. After experiencing a great deal of success at LIU Post, he accepted his first collegiate head coaching position at Division III St. Joseph's College. In 2017, he led the Golden Eagles to their best conference record in five years before the team ultimately fell by a single goal in the conference championship.

Mendolia's next coaching stop took him to Spain where he spent a year in two separate roles. He served both as a Professional Youth Academy Soccer Coach at Escuela de Futbol Huesca & SD Huesca and as as the 1^stAssistant Coach for (UD) Union Deportivo San Lorenzo del Flumen of La Liga Division 3^a. In 2019, he served as an assistant coach for Sky Blue FC of the NWSL 1^stDivision before his most recent coaching stop at Division I Seton Hall University. At Seton Hall, he once again served as the 1^st Assistant Coach for two seasons in 2020 and 2021. In his final stop before arriving at CSI, Mendolia joined Brooklyn City Football Club as Technical Director of Grassroots in 2022, a role he currently continues to serve in.

ALEXHIRING_2023 — **Mendolia wtih Sky Blue FC in 2019**

Mendolia believes all of his past experiences had an important role to play in preparing him for his roles as CSI Head Coach. "Over the years I have been very fortunate to work alongside and under many excellent coaches at the collegiate and professional levels, all of which has best prepared me for a head coaching position. From managing collegiate programs to understanding the motivation of players at the different levels of the game, I am excited for and prepared to take this group to the next level as student-athletes."

In addition to his vast experience as a coach, Mendolia also possesses numerous licenses and certifications in several areas of expertise from both UEFA and USSF. These include talent identification, sports performance, tactical analysis, youth instruction, goalkeeping and more. In 2015, he also completed a Master's Degree from Ohio University in Coaching Education.

Director of Athletics Chase Licata expressed great confidence that the new Head Coach is well-equipped to lead the Women's Soccer program to future success on and off the field. "What impressed us about Alex is his diverse coaching background and his commitment to the student-athlete experience. Alex brings a wealth of knowledge from his time working at all three NCAA levels. On top of that, Alex has professional coaching experience, stateside and abroad. Alex is a smart and tactical coach who is driven by his passion for helping our student-athletes excel on and off the pitch. CSI is fortunate to have someone with such a strong coaching pedigree that can help these ladies in our Division II era. We are confident that his dedication to instilling a successful culture for the CSI Women's Soccer program will pay off in the long run. We are all excited for this next chapter of CSI Women's Soccer right here at 2800 Victory Boulevard."

The Dolphins are coming off a 2-9-3 season that saw them finish 2-5-1 in conference play. This past season was their first year of postseason eligibility as an NCAA Divsion II program and the team will be looking for their first Division II postseason berth next season. The Dolphins remained alive in the playoff hunt this past year until the final week of the season before they were ultimately eliminated with a loss to Daemen on October 26^th. Follow the Women's Soccer schedule page here for updates regarding the 2023 schedule which is expected to be released in July.

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