Coaching Staff
Head Coach
Michael Joyce
Michael Joyce will join the College as the head coach of the varsity soccer program beginning with the 2010 fall season.
The California native has a wealth of collegiate coaching experience as he becomes the twelfth coach at the helm of the program at Saint Mary’s. He most recently served as the head coach of the women’s soccer team at Cornell College in Iowa from 2007-2009. At the Division III program, he guided the Rams to a third place conference finish and was named the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) Coach of the Year in 2007. Joyce also led the Rams to a pair of IIAC playoff appearances in 2007 and 2008.
Before being named the head coach at Cornell, Joyce served as the assistant men’s coach at the college and the head boys’ soccer coach at Clear Creek Amana High School. He was also the assistant coach of the men’s team at Division II San Francisco State University for four years from 2002-2006. In 2003, the Gators received an Academic All-American Team Award while Joyce oversaw student-athlete academic progress of the members of the team.
He also has over a decade of coaching experience at the youth and high school levels in California and Iowa.
Joyce holds both a United States Soccer Federation “B” coaching license as well as a National Soccer Coaches Association of America goalkeeping diploma.
During his playing career, Joyce was a member of the U17 and U23 North California State Olympic Development Team. He was a team captain, team most valuable player, and the West Catholic Athletic League Offensive Player of the Year at Saint Francis (Calif.) High School, where he also helped his team win the Central Coast championship in 1993.
From there, Joyce went on to play at San Francisco State, where was also a team captain, team MVP, and led the Gators in scoring. Joyce was also an all-conference and All Far West Region honoree at San Francisco State.
He earned his degree in English with a concentration in creative writing from San Francisco State and holds a Master of Arts in sport management from the University of San Francisco.
“I’m excited to be at a school with exceptional academics, a gorgeous campus, and a welcoming student body,” commented Joyce on his new position. “My goal is to make Saint Mary’s soccer a consistently competitive program, and a team whose culture the players are proud to be associated with. This is a group that cares passionately about their school and the soccer program.”
Assistant Coaches
Tom Van Meter
Tom Van Meter has been a staple in the South Bend soccer community for nearly his entire life. He previously was the head coach of the Belles soccer program in the late 1980's and early 90's, leading the Belles to NAIA post-season berths. He has 25 years of coaching experience through head coaching positions at South Bend St. Joseph's High School, Penn High School, and Saint Mary's. Van Meter was inducted into the Saint Mary's College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2002 and the Indiana State Soccer Association Hall of Fame in 2007. In addition to his coaching duties, Van Meter teaches at Penn High School.
