FOND DU LAC - Craig Peltonen has announced his retirement after 35 seasons with the Marian University men's soccer program.

"I'm very thankful to Marian College, now University, for giving me my first collegiate head coaching opportunity," said Peltonen.  "Much like the vast majority of faculty and staff at Marian, I've embraced the community environment and values that Marian espouses. Three of my four children have graduated from Marian and that wouldn't have been the case had I not believed in the Marian mission and the educational experience they received here. I have way too many great memories of my time at Marian, whether it was with our men's soccer team, women's soccer team, tennis student-athletes at Marian, other student-athletes, or the Marian community itself. I've played a small part in helping to shape some lives of students at Marian, but those students and Marian have played a larger role in helping to shape my life. The bottom line is, I'm retiring, but I'm not going anywhere. I'll still be in Fond du Lac, I'll still be supporting the Sabres and my connection to Marian will always be there."

Peltonen helped guide the Sabres to six Lake Michigan Conference (LMC) Championships, three consecutive appearances to the NCAA Tournament, and 262 total victories under his leadership.  Peltonen was named the LMC/NACC Coach of the Year eight times, NAIA District Co-Coach of the Year once, and was inducted to the Wisconsin Soccer Coaches Association (WSCA) Hall of Fame in 2012.

His first season with Marian saw him lead Marian to a 14-3-0 record and the first of his six LMC Championships.  He went on to earn his first of seven LMC Coach of the Year honors including an NAIA District Co-Coach of the Year award in 1991.  The 1998 version of Marian University men's soccer set a program record for wins in a single season going 15-3-1 with a 10-1-1 LMC record to earn his fourth conference championship. He also earned his fourth LMC Coach of the Year award.

This helped set the stage for the most successful run for Marian men's soccer from 2000-2002 where Marian would win two conference championships and earn a berth to the NCAA Tournament in all three seasons.  The 2000 season saw the Sabres go 14-9-0 with a 12-3-0 LMC record.  After defeating Wisconsin Lutheran and MSOE at home, Marian went on the road to defeat Edgewood 1-0 to win the conference tournament and qualify for the first trip to the NCAA Tournament for the program. Marian opened the NCAA Tournament defeating Ripon 2-1 for the first national tournament win in program history.  Marian then went 14-3-4 in 2001 with a 10-0-2 LMC ledger and didn't allow a goal in the LMC Tournament to earn a second straight trip to the NCAA Tournament.  The Sabres wouldn't allow a goal to UW-Whitewater in this trip but fell on penalty kicks 8-7.  The Sabres were able to make it a three-peat of trips to the NCAA Tournament in 2002 after winning the LMC regular season and tournament titles and once again didn't allow a goal in the LMC Tournament.

This run capped off the LMC era of Marian University men's soccer with Peltonen boasting a 108-40-8 (.718) record.  The Sabres had four seasons without losing an LMC match and four seasons with double-digit wins on the overall record.  Along with his seven LMC Coach of the Year awards, Peltonen coached two NAIA All-Americans and three LMC Player of the Year honorees.

Peltonen is the only coach who has headed the Sabre men's soccer program during the NACC era leading Marian to 56 NACC wins and four NACC Tournament appearances.  Peltonen has helped guide the Sabres to three double-digit win seasons in the NACC era with the most recent coming last season when the Sabres went 10-7-2 with a 7-3-2 NACC record.  This proved to be his most successful season in terms of conference record in the NACC era and earned him his only NACC Coach of the Year award.

Along with being the winningest coach in the history of the men's soccer program, Peltonen is also the winningest coach for the Marian women's soccer program.  Peltonen headed the Sabre women's soccer program from 1990 to 2006, with the exception of the 1999 season, and posted 94 wins.  His best season with the women's soccer program came in 1994 where the Sabres earned their lone conference championship after going 3-0-1 in LMC play.  Marian would have a pair of seasons with double-digit wins.

"Craig is synonymous with Marian athletics," said Director of Athletics Tony Draves.  "He has shown passion for the success of the Marian community for over 30 years, but his attention to the development of his young men and student-athletes will be his true mark on our university.  Thank you to Craig, Cathy and the Peltonen family for all of their contributions to Marian University and Sabre athletic department."

Off of the pitch, Peltonen served as the head coach for the men's tennis program for 19 seasons.  In 1999, Peltonen helped lead Marian to its only conference championship.  Along with his tenure of coaching at Marian, Peltonen worked with various club programs in Wisconsin including the Milwaukee Bavarians, Milwaukee Kickers, Fond du Lac, and Elm Grove. He also served on the Board of Directors for Fond du Lac Soccer Association and the Wisconsin Soccer Coaches Association. For many years he was involved with the Wisconsin Youth Soccer Association and their Olympic Development Program, along with their Coach Education licensing program.