the Informer

By Dan Lifshatz & Jeremy Stanley

Hartford men’s head soccer coach Dan Gaspar resigned Monday to pursue a job in international coaching.

Gaspar’s resignation comes as a surprise, as Gaspar had improved the Hartford program dramatically since joining the Hawks’ staff in 2005, reaching the America East Tournament for three consecutive years.

Hawks midfielder Andrew Liapis said, “We had practice on Monday and after practice we had a team meeting in the locker room and … he was emotional and he sat down with us and told us what the situation is.”

The resignation came as a shock “for some of the guys,” Liapis said. “He’s been here five years. I feel that he gave a lot to the program he was a good coach. It was a good opportunity for him to improve his professional career, even though we don’t know where he’s going.”

Since 2005, Gaspar and the Hawks compiled a 36-46-21 record, while reaching three America East Tournaments in a row in 2007, 2008, and 2009.

Along the way, Gaspar helped 19 players gain America East All-Conference Honors, six of which were first team members.

Gaspar was also an integral part of the Hawks soccer program as a goalkeeper, playing from 1974-1977. As a goalkeeper, he helped the team make NCAA Tournament appearances in 1976 and 1977, posting a career goals-against-average of 1.52, according to hartfordhawks.com.

Liapis said, “he really gave everything he had to the program, he wanted to improve the level of play here.”

Gaspar has also helped Hartford’s fan base increase by a large amount.

Hartford ranked 39th in the country in 2008, with an average attendance of 814 per-game, while following up another impressive campaign in 2009, ranking 41st in the nation with an average attendance of 778 fans a game, according to hartfordhawks.com.

The future remains unclear for the program—a national search for a new coach is underway—players could choose to transfer.

Liapis said, “He has a great reputation, it could help players [pursue professional careers, because] he’s a good guy to know.”

At the same time, players who are upset with Gaspar leaving may opt to transfer, but it’s too early to tell, Liapis said.

Patricia Meiser, the athletic director, told hartfordhawks.com, “His leadership and dedication to advancing Hartford men’s soccer will be hard to replace. We wish coach Gaspar the best of luck in his next endeavor.”

Gaspar has been rumored to be interested in joining the Iranian national team with his long-time friend Carlos Queiroz, who is being strongly considered to take the Iranian national job.