By Bryant Romero –
For the first time in seven years, the NJCU Women’s Soccer team will be under new leadership following the decision of head coach Robert Bielan, Jr. to resign. Bielan said he is leaving to pursue another opportunity at St. Peter’s University in Jersey City.
“It was nothing internal, but I was offered to be the head coach of St Peter’s Division I Women’s Soccer team,” said Bielan. “I was given an opportunity at NJCU – I felt I completed it and even exceeded the university’s expectations.”
Another factor in Bielan’s decision to step down was that all of the players he’d recruited from the start of his tenure have graduated, which contributed to his feeling that he’d fulfilled his obligation as coach.
“I waited until all the girls that I had recruited graduated college, which was important to me, even though I had been offered other opportunities as far as three years ago,” said Bielan.
With Bielan moving on the players will have to adjust to new leadership, with Michael Vivino now running the women’s soccer program. Just how do the players feel about Bielan’s decision and what do they expect from their new coach and this season?
“I was supportive of Coach Bielan’s decision. I don’t blame him. It’s a great opportunity,” said Brittany Hoffman, 20, Fire Science, from Pittsburgh, PA. “He was a fun coach to play for. [There were] good times [and] good memories. He worked us hard, but it was enjoyable.”
Despite Bielan’s departure, Hoffman has high hopes for the upcoming season. “The timing of Coach Bielan’s decision will be rough on us, but I expect us to have a good season,” she said. “I have good hopes for Coach Vivino. He’s very good and has a good supporting cast.”
Bielan is also optimistic. “I’m sure Vivino’s going to do his job to the best of his ability,” he said.
During his tenure, Bielan became the longest serving coach and racked up the most wins in the program’s history. When Bielan was first hired in August of 2006 however, he took over a struggling program that was coming off a dismal 5-14 season. The team’s struggles were primarily due to lack of stability, especially with multiple coaches coming and going throughout the first 15 years of the program. By the 2006 season, the women’s soccer team was in jeopardy of being scrapped altogether.
“When I was first hired, I was the 13th coach in 15 years of the program’s existence,” Bielan said. “The athletic administrators wanted to cancel women’s soccer. They didn’t think there was value and me being an alumnus, I wasn’t going to let that happen. I didn’t want it to go away.”
Bielan had a plan to improve the women’s soccer program. He did some heavy recruiting his first year as head coach, bringing in 12 players in less than a week. However, things didn’t start out so smooth as the team only won three games in an 18 game schedule during his first year. The team gradually improved to seven wins the following season, with many more wins (13 in the 2009 season) and accolades to follow.
“I have many great memories, but the greatest thrill under my tenure was winning our first conference game,” he said. “We were even on News 12 New Jersey, and featured twice on ESPN Top 10 Plays of the Day, and making it to the quarterfinals in NJCU women’s soccer first ever Eastern College Athletic Conference post-season tournament is up there.”
At the program’s peak, the team would be ranked 23rd in the nation, which is a great accomplishment considering that the program was once on the verge of being shut down. But it wasn’t the wins, awards, or even bringing the soccer program back to respectable heights that most satisfied Bielan. It was watching the players he had recruited from day one grow into successful individuals.
“It was a great run and I met some great girls and they are successful with careers. It was rewarding watching them grow,” Bielan said.