Karli Kopietz has been named an assistant coach for the NDSU women's soccer program, Bison head coach Mark Cook announced June 20.
A Champlin, Minn., native, Kopietz served as a volunteer assistant for NDSU in 2012. From 2012-13, she also instructed the goalkeepers for the Tri-City Soccer Club and was the head coach of the club’s U17 girls team.
“I am very excited to add Karli to our coaching staff,” Cook said. “Her enthusiasm and passion for the game are contagious and really show through when she is working with the players. It is also a huge bonus for us to have a former player on staff, as her desire to see NDSU soccer succeed can really help with recruiting future Bison soccer players.”
Kopietz holds Level 1, 2 and 3 certifications from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, as well as a goalkeeping diploma certification.
Kopietz was a goalkeeper for NDSU in 2005 after transferring from the University of Minnesota. She was named the 2005 Division I Independent Defensive Player of the Year and is the NDSU career leader with a goals against average of 0.84. As a freshman in 2002, Kopietz earned the Most Valuable Defensive Player distinction for Minnesota.
“I am honored to have the opportunity to give back to the school and soccer program that played such a key role in my development,” Kopietz said. I’m humbled to be a part of a coaching staff that I hold in such high regard.”
NDSU is recognized as one of the nation's top 108 public and private universities by the Carnegie Commission on Higher Education.