VSN (admin) Published Saturday, January 14, 2023 – 05:00 PM
Kansas City, Mo. — The Bethel University Men’s Soccer coach Thiago Pinto was awarded the 2022 Select Sport America NAIA Men’s Soccer Coach of the Year after winning the program’s first NAIA National Championship over the University of Mobile (Ala.).
This is the first time Pinto has won NAIA Coach of the Year, and he is the first Bethel Coach to receive the honor.
Pinto won NCCAA National Coach of the Year in 2015, along with three Crossroads League Coach of the Year in ’09, ’10, ’16, ’21 and now ’22.
The last time Pinto won Crossroads League Coach of the Year was in 2010, when the team was ranked 22n.d in the NAIA and lost to the University of Mobile (Ala.) 3-1 to open the season. The irony would continue that year as the Pilots would lose to the University of Rio Grande (Ohio) once in the regular season and in the Opening Round of the NAIA tournament to end the 2010 season. The Pilots’ overall record in 2010 was 13-8 and 11-1 against the Crossroads League.
In 2009 the Pilots were also ranked 22n.d in the NAIA. They had a comparable season to the 2022 National Championship run with an 18-game winning streak and a record of 18-1-1 but ended the season with a 2-0 loss to Bellevue University in the playoffs.
Bethel University (IN) Soccer Men’s Crossroads League Awards & Achievements
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