GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Davenport University Executive Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Paul Lowden has announced the hiring of Joe White as the fifth women's soccer head coach in program history.
"Joe communicated a vision and plan that aligned with our overall goal for the women's soccer program," said Lowden. "He is well connected in the area and has a proven record of working with soccer programs that build character and talented student-athletes. Joe's work ethic and passion will have an immediate impact for our current student-athletes and help our efforts in attracting top talent to compete with the elite programs in the GLIAC. We are very excited to have Joe join the Panther family."
White takes over the reins of the program after Paige Eli guided it for the last four seasons. Eli accepted a position as an assistant coach at Western Michigan University.
White brings collegiate experience to Davenport and most recently was an assistant coach for both the men's and women's programs at nearby Aquinas College. The women's team in 2022 had a tremendous season going 21-3-1 and 11-0 in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference. They defeated three nationally-ranked teams during the season and advanced to the NAIA National Quarterfinals before falling 1-0 to No. 1 Keiser. The men's team also saw success going 10-7-3 and 6-4-1 in the WHAC. Their season came to an end in the semifinals of the WHAC Tournament in penalty kicks.
"I am proud and honored to have the opportunity to lead Davenport women's soccer," said White. "I would like to thank Paul Lowden, Ronda Varnesdeel, and everyone else involved in the search committee for putting your trust in me to lead the program. I am excited to get to work with the group and start building towards an exciting future."
He also served as lead assistant coach for men's soccer at Auburn University at Montgomery (NCAA D2) for three years from 2019-21. The Warhawks compiled a 11-5-4 record in 2021 and were 7-2-2 in the Gulf South Conference. They advanced to the NCAA Tournament and picked up two wins against Tampa (1-0) and Young Harris (0-0, 5-4 PK). White was named AUM Assistant Coach of the Year for 2019-20 and he was part of the coaching staff in 2019 that was GSC Co-Coaching Staff of the Year. That squad went 9-6-3 and 6-2-3 in the conference.
White has also been a part of the Saginaw Valley State men's and women's soccer programs as a volunteer coach during the 2018-19 season. He worked with the goalkeepers and the Cardinals saw success with the men's team going 11-3-6 and winning the GLIAC regular season and advancing to the NCAA Tournament. The women's team went 12-4-4 overall and also made the NCAA Tournament.
He is also currently employed by Midwest United Football Club in Grand Rapids and is the USL Pre-Professional Women's Team Head Coach. In addition, he is the ECNL Director and ECNL Head Coach for the U19 and U17 teams. White was also recognized by United Soccer Coaches for their 30 Under 30 program which selects the top 30 coaches in the country under the age of 30.
White earned his bachelor's degree from Hastings College (Neb.) in economics and business administration in 2018. He followed that up with a master's degree from Auburn University at Montgomery in business administration in 2021. He was a standout as a student-athlete at Hastings for two seasons leading the team to a combined record of 43-3-2 in the NAIA ranks. He was part of the 2016 NAIA National Championship team and was a two-time NAIA All-America selection in 2016 and 2017.