April 30, 2003

Cirillo named new men's soccer coach at Missouri Southern

On the pitch for the Missouri Southern men's soccer team, Kiley Cirillo was thought of as a coach on the field. In 2003, Cirillo will be back in action for the Lions, but he'll do most of his work from the sidelines.

Cirillo, a former team captain and four-year starter (1997-2000) with the Missouri Southern men's soccer team, is coming back to his alma mater as the head men's soccer coach, athletics director Sallie Beard announced today.

"We're delighted to have Kiley come back to Missouri Southern and serve as our head men's soccer coach," Beard said. "He is a very good fit for our program. He was our first choice and the first choice of the team as well."

Cirillo was two-time All-MIAA pick as a freshman and sophomore in 1997 and 1998 ('98 was the final season for men's soccer as an MIAA sport) as a defender at Missouri Southern. He played in 63 career matches with the Lions, notching four goals and 10 assists for 18 total points. Cirillo later served as the assistant coach for the Southern men's and women's teams after completing his playing career. He earned a bachelorÕs degree in business marketing from MSSC.

"I am thrilled," Cirillo said. "There's not much of a better opportunity for me, for one as a career-starter, and two to be a part of something that I was a part of helping to build a few years ago.

"For the players here, it's good because they don't have to go through a transition with a new head coach from outside the system," Cirillo added. "They know me. They know my style and how I present it."

Cirillo replaces Geoff Van Deusen, who resigned in late March to take a position at Central Missouri State University as head women's soccer coach and events coordinator. Van Deusen had served as both the head men's and women's soccer coach at Southern, but the position has since been broken into two coaching jobs. That means Cirillo will only serve as men's coach, while another individual will take over the women's post.

Cirillo, a native of Springfield, Mo. and a graduate of Kickapoo High School, had been working as Director of Coaching/Director of Club for the Springfield Premier Soccer Club. There, he was responsible for the development of approximately 350 youth soccer players and served as head coach of the under-16 boys and girls teams, the under-18 girls team and the under-13 girls squad. He also was responsible for the placement and resume-building of college-bound student-athletes, planning and organizing coaches meetings, coach evaluations and daily club operations.

As a player at Kickapoo, Cirillo was a three-time all-conference player and a three-year varsity starter. He led the Chiefs to a third-place finish at the state championships in 1996.

The Missouri Southern men's team finished 5-10-1 in 2002 but is expected to return all 11 starters for the 2003 campaign. The Lions open their upcoming season on Sept. 1 at home vs. Benedictine (Kan.).

"We only lost two players from last year," Cirillo said. "It's a fantastic opportunity for them to achieve their goals. I saw them play some in spring ball and we're clicking on all cylinders. We need to do some fine tuning, but the team chemistry is great. They've raised the bar and they demand it from each other, and that goes along way in the game."