Bryan Finley- Head Coach, Women’s Soccer

As an Assistant Coach with New Jersey City University in the powerful D3 NJAC Conference from 2009-2011, Coach Finley helped guide the NJCU Women to the three most successful seasons in their 19-year history. The team compiled a 41-24-1 record (after going 67-204-6 overall from 1994-2008) and was dominant on its home field with a 26-5-1 record. The team made the national news circuit in 2009 when they won their first conference game in 15 years (breaking an 0-111-1 winless streak!) and went on to post an 11-15 record in the NJAC Conference from 2009-2011. The team had never won a tournament of any kind prior to 2009 and won a preseason tournament in each of the three seasons he was there. They had never qualified for postseason play in the previous 16 seasons but qualified for the ECAC Tournament all three years, reaching the semifinals in 2009 and 2011, and for the NJAC Tournament in 2010 and 2011. The NJCU Women's Soccer Team won the NSCAA Academic award for team GPA in 2009 (another “first” for the team) and again in 2011. For the past three years the team has been first or second in GPA among all athletic teams at NJCU. The team is also eligible for the 2011 NSCAA Sportsmanship Award for having less than 10 yellow cards and no red cards during the season, which would also be a first for the program. Numerous individual and team records were broken, both offensive and defensive. In 2011, the team was ranked #25 in the nation by D3Soccer. At the U.S. PARMA Soccer Club where he is the Youth Program Director and coach of several teams, the Azzurri team was the #4 ranked U18G team in NJ in 2008. They were 2007 State Cup Semi-Finalists and 2009 State Cup Champions. Coach Finley also coaches the U.S. PARMA Spirito, 2010 US Club NJ Cup Champions and 2011 Finalists. The Spirito had a combined record of 52-15-16 in 2010-11 with a 19-game unbeaten streak during that time. They ended their U19 careers with 7 straight tournament championships and were ranked #2 in NJ and #12 in the USA. Coach Finley's club players have served as captains of both their high school and D1, D2, D3 college teams and have won numerous individual awards for academics and athletics including All-State, All-County, All-Conference and All-America at both the high school and college level. For the past four years Coach Finley has coached soccer, winter and spring track at the Oak Knoll School (all girls) in Summit, NJ. He helped start the middle school soccer program in 2008, and in 2010 he was Asst. Coach for the Oak Knoll Varsity Soccer team that went 12-6 overall. They finished third in the conference and advanced to the Union County Tournament Quarterfinals and the NJ State Sectional Semi-finals. The track team has won County, Conference and State Championships in the 1600, 3200, 4x400, long jump and javelin during his tenure and has more than half of the school records during that time.

Jim Kennedy- Assistant Coach, Women’s Soccer

Coach Kennedy has been involved with soccer for 35 years as a player and coach. He played at Scotch Plains-Fanwood HS, one of the most successful boys’ programs in the country. He moved on to Union County College where he became one of the leading junior college scorers in the nation. He transferred to Rowan University, a D3 powerhouse, where he was converted to a defender. He has coached U5-U23 club soccer reaching the NJ State Cup Finals and Semi-Finals several times. During his three years at Somerville HS, his girls’ varsity team went from being a .500 team to a state powerhouse. He was voted Coach of the Year in 1999 for his efforts. Coach Kennedy has coached club soccer for the Westfield Soccer Association, Branchburg Youth Soccer, FC Premier, Somervlle and the U.S. PARMA Soccer Club. Among his many duties for King’s, Coach Kennedy will be responsible for goalkeeper training and recruiting.

 

Julia Caseres- Assistant Coach Women’s Soccer

A standout player at Union High School in NJ who garnered All-County and All-State awards, Coach Caseres scored 78 goals during her high school career. She attended Rutgers-Newark as a freshman and posted 22 goals and 8 assists. She would transfer to New Jersey City University in her sophomore year and would go on to post a staggering 100 career goals and 42 assists. The 242 points not only makes her the all-time NJAC conference scoring leader (for men or women), but it also makes her the all-time NCAA scorer for the state of NJ (D1, D2, D3, men and women when she passed Christie Rampone of Monmouth University (and captain of the US Women’s National Team). She was a 4-time all-conference selection, a D3 All-American and an Academic All-American with her 3.58 GPA. Along with teammate Jen Albuja, the two are the second all-time leading scoring combination in D3 history with 445 points. Coach Caseres has coached U9-U14 players as a trainer with Victory Soccer Academy. She also coaches at the U.S. PARMA Soccer Club where she coached the U14G Vittoria team. In 2011 she helped guide the U17G Dapprima team to the US Club NJ Cup Finals and in 2012, along with Coach Finley, she lead the U16G Liberta to a heartbreaking 1-0 loss in the NJ State Cup Finals. Coach Caseres brings a wealth of not only playing experience, but more importantly, she is an example of what it means to be a student-athlete.