 Over
ten seasons, Leigh Sears < sears@hope.edu > has become Hope's winningest women's
soccer coach. She has guided the Flying Dutch to two conference championships
and appearances in the NCAA playoffs. In 10 seasons, coach
Sears has compiled a 103-84-13 record.
As a collegian, she was a three-sport standout at Ohio
Wesleyan University. She was an all-conference player in the North
Coast Athletic Conference in three sports -- soccer, basketball and
track. In her senior year in soccer, she was voted the Ohio and conference
player of the year and achieved All-America recognition as a midfielder.
In 1998 she was inducted into the Ohio Wesleyan University Athletic
Hall of Fame.
After receiving her bachelor of arts degree from Ohio
Wesleyan, she earned the masters of science degree from Ithaca College
(N.Y.) and in 2007 was awarded the Ph.D. degree from The Ohio State
University.
Prior to coming to Hope, Sears was the women's soccer
coach at Marietta College (Ohio) (1994-99). In addition to her teaching
and coaching responsibilities at Marietta, she was faculty advisor
to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
She has served a chief clinician for women at the Ohio
High School Soccer Coaches Association and has been a member of the
NCAA Division III Great Lakes region women's soccer advisory committee.
She has been a director and clinician at numerous soccer
and basketball camps.
A member of the kinesiology faculty, she holds the
rank of associate professor.
Hope Under Coach Sears
| Year |
Overall |
MIAA |
Place |
NCAA |
| 2000 |
5-11-1 |
5-8-1 |
5th |
------ |
| 2001 |
7-11-1 |
4-9-1 |
5th (tie) |
------ |
| 2002 |
12-7-1 |
11-2-1 |
2nd |
------ |
| 2003 |
Academic leave |
|
|
|
| 2004 |
13-5-2 |
11-1-2 |
1st |
0-1 |
| 2005 |
18-2-1 |
15-1-0 |
1st-tie |
0-0 (eliminated in shootout) |
| 2006 |
9-8-2 |
6-4-1 |
2nd |
|
| 2008 |
13-6-0 |
7-3-0 |
3rd |
|
| 2009 |
8-9-1 |
4-3-1 |
5th |
|
| 2010 |
6-9-3 |
2-4-2 |
7th |
|
| 2011 |
12-8-0 |
10-6-0 |
4th-tie |
|
Hope Women's Soccer
Coaching Records
| Coach |
Seasons |
W-L-T |
Pct. |
Best in MIAA |
| Stein Slette |
5 (1989, 93-96) |
47-29-8 |
.607 |
2nd (1993) |
| Bob Holwerda |
1 (1990) |
8-5-1 |
.607 |
3rd (1990) |
| Allan Allsup |
2 (1991-92) |
19-12-2 |
.606 |
3rd (1991) |
| Paul Rosenbrook |
3 (1997-99) |
34-20-0 |
.630 |
3rd (1997 & 1998) |
| Lindsey Engelsman |
1 (2003) |
16-4-2 |
.786 |
1st (2003) |
| Leigh Sears |
10 (2000-02, 04-11) |
103-84-13 |
.566 |
1st (2004 & 2005) |
| |
|
|
|
|
| All-time |
22 |
237-154-26 |
.619 |
1st (2003-04-05) |
| 
