Brazeau Named Men's Soccer Coach Of The Year
Seventh year head man is honored by the Northwest Conference after leading Boxers to one of the best turnarounds in Division III men's soccer history
FOREST GROVE - Leading Pacific to one of the biggest turnarounds in
Division III men's soccer this season has earned Pacific head coach Jim
Brazeau the Northwest Conference's top honor.
Brazeau was named the Northwest Conference Men's Soccer Coach of the
Year on Thursday, earning the award voted upon by all eight conference
coaches. It marks the fourth time that a Pacific men's soccer
coach has been selected as Coach of the Year.
Brazeau was surprised by the award and was appreciative of his
peers. "I am very honored to be selected, but this award is
because of what this team did on the field," Brazeau said.
The seventh-year manager of the Pacific men's programs made a number of
changes after a disappointing 2005 season that saw the team finish with
2-15-2 record and the most losses in school history. Brazeau gave
up his dual role as director of soccer, resigning his women's coaching
duties, brought in a defensive specialist in assistant coach Jim Rilatt
and a strength specialist in assistant coach Jeff Grundon.
The changes proved dramatic. With basically the same group of
players, Pacific finished with a 10-6-1 overall record and fifth place
in the NWC. Both the Boxers' conference and overall marks were
their best since the 1999 season. The 8.5-game improvement ranks
as one of the top turnarounds in collegiate soccer this season and
ranks among the top turnarounds in NCAA Division III history.
"I could not have done any of this without the addition of Jim and Jeff
to the staff," Brazeau said. "Jim brought a wealth of knowledge
to the program and was an integral part of the year's effort.
Jeff has not only helped our recruiting efforts, but has contributed
greatly to the improved strength of our players and was a great
motivational force for us."
Jimmy Conway, who coached Brazeau when he was a goalkeeper for the
Boxers in the mid 1980s, earned Coach of the Year honors in 1985.
Jeff Enquist was tabbed for the honor twice, in 1994 and 1996, after
leading the Boxers to conference titles both seasons.
Posted by Blake Timm (timmbr@pacificu.edu) on Nov 9, 2006 at 2:00 PM
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