Washington, DC - Patricia Thomas, Director of
Intercollegiate Athletics at the University of the District of
Columbia, has announced the appointment of Matthew L. Thompson as
the University’s new men’s head soccer coach. In making
the announcement Thomas said, “We were fortunate to have a
strong pool of candidates, however Matthew Thompson was clearly the
right choice for the University of the District of Columbia.
He cares about the comprehensive development of student-athletes,
is deeply committed to community outreach, and he is a
winner. I am delighted to have Matt join the Firebird
family."
Thompson, in commenting on his appointment said, “I would
like to thank Ms. Thomas for this fantastic opportunity. I
felt that the program was being run professionally and the goals
for the men’s soccer program matched my ambitions. I’m
excited to be a part of what is being built at UDC and am looking
forward to turning the program into something regionally and
nationally reputable. It’s an exciting time for the program
and Athletic Department and we can’t wait to get
started.”
Thompson comes to UDC from Lees McRae College, where he lead the
Bobcats to a 13-5-3 record, winning the 2010 Conference Carolinas
Regular Season and Conference Tournament Championships as well as a
2010 NCAA Championship berth. A 1998 graduate of
Slippery Rock University, he served his alma mater as head
men’s soccer coach from 2002-2009. Prior to Slippery Rock,
Thompson was an assistant coach for 3 years at NCAA DI Robert
Morris University.
Among Thompson’s career highlights:
• Named PSAC Coach of the Year in 2005, 2008
and 2009
• Achieving most wins in school history at
Slippery Rock in 2009 (18 wins)
• Leading Slippery Rock to three NCAA
Championship appearances
• Reaching the Sweet 16 in 2008 and 2009
• Winning the PSAC Championship in 2005 and
2009
• Coached four NCAA All-Americans and two
current professional players
As a student-athlete, Thompson was a two time PSAC All Conference
selection, a three time Western Pennsylvania All-Star,
two time team captain at Slippery Rock and was team in MVP in
1997.
Thompson has been extremely active in community engagement. He
founded SRU Forgotten Angels, a student-athlete charity aimed at
improving the quality of underprivileged children’s lives
around the world. He lead a missionary trip to Haiti in the
summer of summer 2008 and post Hurricane Katrina volunteered in New
Orleans during the summer of 2009, painting houses and coaching
children.
Thompson also guided a group of student-athletes to St. Lucia in
2010 as part of the Forgotten Angels project, and was involved in
Special Olympics of Pennsylvania while at Slipper Rock
University.
He and his wife Danielle are proud parents of two sons, 8 year old
Liam and 3 year old Joshua.
Provided by the University of the District of Columbia Sports Information Department.