Richard Drake Named Women's Soccer Assistant Coach

6/5/2001

Marshall University Women's Soccer Coach Teresa Patterson announced today that Richard Drake has been hired as an assistant coach.

"We are thrilled to have Richard on board," said Patterson. "He has a wealth of experience at the Division 1 level. Every team he has worked with has been successful at the national level and we are looking forward to achieving similar success here at Marshall."

Drake comes to Marshall following a three-year stint as an assistant coach at the University of Minnesota, where he oversaw the training of field players and goalkeepers, recruiting, and the team's booster club and youth clinics. The Golden Gophers advanced to the NCAA Tournament's second round in 1998 and 1999.

"It's exciting to come to a program that is still fairly young and is on the verge of getting to the next level," said Drake. "I'm really looking forward to having the opportunity to work with Teresa and help the program grow."

Prior to Minnesota, he spent one year as an assistant at the University of Cincinnati and helped the Bearcats win the Conference USA Tournament and advance to the NCAA Tournament in 1997. He also spent one season (1996) as an assistant men's coach at Lincoln College.

Drake also served as co-coach of the Twin Cities Tornado (a men's amateur team that competes in the Premier Development League), a staff coach for the Minnesota Olympic Development Program, and worked with many local clubs.

The native of Harvard, Illinois, played professional soccer for the Rockford Raptors of the United States Soccer League and served as a training squad player for the Cincinnati Silverbacks of the National Professional Soccer League from 1997 to 1998.

He graduated from Aurora University in 1996 with a Bachelor of Arts, History and Secondary Education degree. He played two years of collegiate soccer at Lake Forest College, before transfering to continue his career at Aurora in 1994.