Sasho Cirovski

Last updated
Sasho Cirovski
Personal information
Date of birth (1962-10-14) 14 October 1962 (age 60)
Place of birth Vratnica, Yugoslavia
Position(s) Midfielder
College career
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
1981–1984 Milwaukee Panthers
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
Windsor Wheels
London City
1986–1987 Milwaukee Wave (indoor) 26 (4)
1987 North York Rockets 16 (0)
Managerial career
North York Rockets
–1991 Milwaukee Wave (assistant)
1988–1990 Milwaukee Panthers (assistant)
1991–1992 Hartford Hawks
1993– Maryland Terrapins
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Sasho Cirovski (born 14 October 1962) is a Macedonian-Canadian soccer coach of the University of Maryland. Born in Macedonia and raised in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, Cirovski led his University of Maryland team to the NCAA championship in 2005, 2008, and 2018.

Contents

Early life and career

Born in Macedonia, he grew up in Vratnica, a small village. Cirovski immigrated to Canada at the age of eight and became an outstanding all-around athlete in Ontario schools. A stand-out college soccer player for the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee he was selected the school's outstanding athlete upon his graduation in 1985. He earned a master's degree there in 1989. He played for the Milwaukee Wave of the American Indoor Soccer Association during the 1986–1987 season and later played and coached the North York Rockets. [1] His subsequent coaching career included stints at both his alma mater and at the University of Hartford, where he led his team to two consecutive NCAA Tournament berths.

Cirovski at Maryland

In February 1993 Cirovski was recruited by then Assistant Athletic Director Gothard Lane to come to the University of Maryland, College Park, where the soccer program had enjoyed limited success for years. [2] Upon his arrival in College Park, Cirovski startled the local soccer community when he announced that his goal was to "win the national championship." Starting with holdover players and two transfer students from Hartford who came to join their charismatic coach, his teams began to turn out winning records within two years. In 2002, the Terrapins began a remarkable streak of four consecutive appearances in the NCAA College Cup, the final four of American college soccer. In 2005, they captured the national title with a 1–0 win over top-ranked University of New Mexico. In 2008, he led the Terps to an ACC championship win over Virginia, the team's first since 2002, and also guided his team to the 2008 National Championship over North Carolina by a score of 1–0 in Frisco, Texas.

In October 2017, Cirovski achieved his 400th win in Division I versus the Wisconsin Badgers, becoming the ninth Division I coach to achieve the feat. [3] In 2018, the Terrapins won their third national title under Cirovski with a 1–0 win over the University of Akron, not allowing a goal in any game of the NCAA Tournament.

Personal information

A vocal and demonstrative coach, Cirovski cultivated a "family" atmosphere on his close-knit teams. He also earned the respect of his colleagues, who selected him as the chairman of the national collegiate coaches association in 2004, and the national coach of the year in 2005. He lived in the Maryland suburbs with his wife Shannon Higgins-Cirovski, herself a former soccer All-American and member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame, and their three daughters. [4]

A young Cirovski can be seen performing his soccer skills in the 1987 ESPN Home Video, "Teaching Kids Soccer with Bob Gansler."

Related Research Articles

Scott Buete is a retired American soccer player and soccer coach who last played for the Baltimore Blast. He is currently the assistant coach of the Maryland Terrapins men's soccer program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xfinity Center (College Park, Maryland)</span> Basketball arena at the University of Maryland

Xfinity Center is the indoor arena and student activities center that serves as the home of the University of Maryland Terrapins men's and women's basketball teams. Ground was broken in May 2000 and construction was completed in October 2002 at a cost of $125 million. It replaced Cole Field House as the Terrapins' home court, which had served as the home of Maryland basketball since 1955.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maryland Terrapins</span> Intercollegiate sports teams of the University of Maryland

The Maryland Terrapins, commonly referred to as the Terps, consist of 19 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Maryland, College Park in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I competition. Maryland was a founding member of the Southern Conference in 1921, a founding member of the Atlantic Coast Conference in 1952, and is now a member of the Big Ten Conference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maryland Terrapins men's basketball</span> Mens basketball team of the University of Maryland

The Maryland Terrapins men's basketball team represents the University of Maryland in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I competition. Maryland, a founding member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), left the ACC in 2014 to join the Big Ten Conference. Gary Williams, who coached the Terrapins from 1989 to 2011, led the program to its greatest success, including two consecutive Final Fours in 2001 and 2002, which culminated in the 2002 NCAA National Championship. Maryland has appeared in 30 NCAA tournaments and won their conference tournament 4 times. The Terrapins have competed in 100 seasons, accumulating an overall record of 1,641–1,086 as of the 2022–23 season. Maryland is currently coached by Kevin Willard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maryland Terrapins women's basketball</span> Womens college basketball team

The Maryland Terrapins women's basketball team represents the University of Maryland in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I competition. Maryland, a founding member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), left the ACC in 2014 to join the Big Ten Conference. The program won the 2006 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament championship and has appeared in the NCAA Final Four five times ; Maryland also appeared once in the AIAW Final Four (1978). As members of the ACC, the Terrapins won regular season conference championships and an ACC-record ten conference tournament championships. The program won the Big Ten Conference regular season and tournament championships in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2020, and 2021.

The 2004 Gator Bowl was a post-season American college football bowl game between the Maryland Terrapins and the West Virginia Mountaineers. The 59th edition of the Gator Bowl, it was played at Alltel Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida, on January 1, 2004. The game was the final contest of the 2003 NCAA Division I-A football season for both teams, and ended in a 41–7 victory for Maryland.

The Johns Hopkins–Maryland lacrosse rivalry is an intercollegiate rivalry between the Johns Hopkins Blue Jays, which represent Johns Hopkins University, and the Maryland Terrapins, which represent the University of Maryland. The most prominent event has been the men's lacrosse series, which is widely regarded as one of the greatest rivalries in the sport. More than 115 contests in the series have been played since the schools first met in 1895. The competition is intensified by each program's status as a traditional lacrosse powerhouse. As such, the game has often held national championship implications, and twice the teams played to represent the United States in the Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maryland Terrapins men's soccer</span> American college soccer team

The Maryland Terrapins men's soccer team represents the University of Maryland in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) college soccer competition. The program has won four NCAA Division I College Cup national championships. Maryland won nineteen Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) regular season championships and six ACC tournament championships before joining the Big Ten Conference on July 1, 2014. The Terps won the 2014, 2016, and 2022 Big Ten Conference men's soccer championships and the 2014 and 2015 men's soccer tournament titles.

The Maryland Terrapins baseball team is the varsity intercollegiate baseball program of University of Maryland, College Park in College Park, Maryland, United States. The program's first season was in 1893, and it has been a member of the NCAA Division I Big Ten Conference since the start of the 2015 season. Its home venue is Shipley Field at Bob "Turtle" Smith Stadium, located on Maryland's campus. Rob Vaughn is the team's head coach starting in the 2018 season. The program has appeared in six NCAA Tournaments. It has won zero conference tournament championships and five regular season conference titles. As of the start of the 2021 Major League Baseball season, 38 former Terrapins have appeared in Major League Baseball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patrick Mullins</span> American soccer player

Patrick Michael Mullins is an American retired soccer player. A left-footed forward, he was a two-time winner of the Hermann Trophy as the top men's college soccer player and was the leading scorer in NCAA Division I soccer in 2013. He scored 31 goals during an eight-season career in Major League Soccer (MLS), appearing with five different clubs.

The 2008 Maryland Terrapins men's soccer team represented the University of Maryland, College Park during the 2008 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. The team won its third NCAA College Cup title, and their first since 2005. The team included several future professional players, most notably, Graham Zusi and Omar Gonzalez.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017 Maryland Terrapins men's soccer team</span>

The 2017 Maryland Terrapins men's soccer team represented the University of Maryland, College Park during the 2017 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. It was the 72nd season of the university fielding a program. The Terrapins were led by 25th year head coach, Sasho Cirovski.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maryland–Virginia men's soccer rivalry</span> Rivalry between the UMD Terrapins and the UVA Cavaliers

The Maryland–Virginia men's soccer rivalry, sometimes referred to as the Tydings Cup, is a rivalry between the University of Maryland Terrapins men's soccer team, and the University of Virginia Cavaliers men's soccer team. When both teams competed in the Atlantic Coast Conference, the rivalry was considered one of the most intense college soccer rivalries in the United States. Much of this is due to the program's long-standing rivalries across other sports and competing for recruits in the Mid-Atlantic, as both programs participated in the ACC for over 60 years before Maryland left for the Big Ten Conference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 Maryland Terrapins men's soccer team</span>

The 2018 Maryland Terrapins men's soccer team represented the University of Maryland, College Park during the 2018 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. It was the 73rd season of the university fielding a program. The Terrapins were led by 26th year head coach, Sasho Cirovski.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019 Maryland Terrapins men's soccer team</span>

The 2019 Maryland Terrapins men's soccer team represented the University of Maryland, College Park during the 2019 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. It was the 74th season of the university fielding a program. The Terrapins were led by 27th year head coach, Sasho Cirovski.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Maryland Terrapins men's soccer team</span>

The 2020 Maryland Terrapins men's soccer team represents the University of Maryland, College Park during the 2020 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. It is the 75th season of the university fielding a program. The Terrapins are led by 28th year head coach, Sasho Cirovski.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maryland–Virginia lacrosse rivalry</span>

The Maryland–Virginia lacrosse rivalry is an intercollegiate lacrosse rivalry between the Virginia Cavaliers and Maryland Terrapins. The teams first met in 1926 and have met 95 times, the second-most for UVA and third-most for UMD against any opponent. The two are some of the most historically successful intercollegiate programs, combining for twenty-one national titles, ten of which have come in the NCAA era. The Cavaliers and Terrapins were league foes in the Atlantic Coast Conference from 1954 to 2014, before Maryland joined the Big Ten the following year. The teams ceased their annual matchup until a meeting five years later in the 2019 NCAA Lacrosse Championship, won by Virginia on the way to their sixth NCAA championship. The 2020 season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but games have resumed since.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2005 Maryland Terrapins men's soccer team</span>

The 2005 Maryland Terrapins men's soccer team represented the University of Maryland, College Park during the 2005 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. It was the 60th season of the university fielding a program. The Terrapins were led by 13th year head coach, Sasho Cirovski.

Malcolm Johnston is a Canadian soccer player who currently plays for MLS Next Pro side Whitecaps FC 2. He is the brother of Celtic player Alistair Johnston.

References

  1. "Sasho Cirovski soccer statistics on StatsCrew.com".
  2. Cirovski Leaves Hartford To Coach At Maryland
  3. "Cirovski wins 400th game in 5–4 win". umterps. October 13, 2017. Retrieved October 15, 2017.
  4. THE WINNINGEST COACH IN MARYLAND SOCCER HISTORY (Profile) – UM Terps