Geoff VanDeusen is in his
fourth
season as the Jennies soccer mentor. He became the second head coach in Jennies soccer history, when he was named
to replace Al Iantorno prior to the 2003 season.
Geoff VanDeusen is in his
fourth
season as the Jennies soccer mentor. He became the second head coach in Jennies soccer history, when he was named
to replace Al Iantorno prior to the 2003 season.
Last season his squad had the seventh largest turnaround in the country in wins, improving to 11-8-1 and nearly doubled their goal scoring output from 21 in 2004 to 40 last season. In the MIAA, the Jennies finished tied for second with a league mark of 8-5-1.
His second season he led a young squad to a 4-12-4 mark, lacking the scoring punch in several close games. The Jennies finished 2-8-4 in conference play for a sixth place finish. In his inaugural season at CMSU, VanDeusen led an injury-riddled team to a 7-11-1 record overall, 6-7-1 and third place in the MIAA.
In 1999, VanDeusen started the women’s soccer program at Missouri Southern State University and led the Lady Lions to a 1-16-1 finish. In the next three seasons, he took Southern to the level of contender in the ever more difficult Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association. While at Southern, VanDeusen had the task of serving as head coach for two sports, also serving as the mentor for the men’s soccer program. He led the Lions to a four-year record of 28-36-1, while leading the Lady Lions to a mark of 27-40-5.
After his squad’s one-win season in 1999, VanDeusen led Missouri Southern to records of 5-11-0
in 2000, 10-8-2 in 2001, and 11-5-2 in 2002. Perhaps more importantly, the Jennies went from
1-4-0 records their first two seasons in the MIAA to 8-4-0 in 2001, and 7-3-2 in
2002. He was
named Co-MIAA Coach of the Year for his turnaround effort in 2000.
VanDeusen went to Missouri Southern after two seasons (1997 and 1998) at Hastings College, an NAIA school in Hastings, Neb., where he served as head men's soccer coach and admissions counselor. There he was named Nebraska Iowa Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 1997 after leading the Broncos to the conference title.
VanDeusen also served as head men's and women's soccer coach at Marycrest International University in 1995 and 1996, and as assistant soccer coach and administrative assistant for athletics at Western Illinois University, an NCAA Division I program in Macomb, Ill.
At Marycrest, VanDeusen led both the men's and women's programs to 1996 Midwest Classic Conference championships, 1995 Conference Tournament titles, and the 1995 NAIA Midwest Regional Tournament while being named Midwest Classic Conference Coach of the Year. VanDeusen earned a bachelor's degree in 1996 from Western Illinois University, and in 1997 claimed an Advanced National Coaching Diploma from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. In May of 2001, he also completed his studies for a master's degree in education from Southwest Missouri State University.
As a player, VanDeusen started two years as a goalkeeper for the Leathernecks of Western Illinois after transferring from Trinity College in Deerfield, Ill., where he started as a freshman and sophomore and helped lead the Trojans to a third place finish at the National Christian College Athletic Association National Tournament.
VanDeusen has also worked with the Olympic Development Program at the state level in Iowa and Nebraska, at the regional level in Region I, which is a program designed to identify and develop high-level soccer players throughout the United States.
In addition to coaching the Lions and Lady Lions soccer teams at Missouri Southern, VanDeusen was instrumental in the development of youth soccer in the Joplin area. He served as director of coach for the Southern Pride Youth Soccer Club. Currently he is the co-founder of the United Soccer Club of Central Missouri and serves as the director of coaching.
He will continue to serve on the NCAA Division II National Women’s Soccer Committee, serving as chair in both 2003 and 2004, the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Convention Committee, and is chair of the Warrensburg Chamber of Commerce Sports Tourism Committee.
VanDeusen and his wife, Caroline, have a eight-year-old son, Geoffrey III and four-year-old daughter, Anna.