Westmont College Warriors

To say that Dave Wolf is the winningest coach in Westmont men’s soccer history is no small statement of accomplishment. Not only has Westmont won 674 games – second most among NAIA schools – but in the Warriors’ 58-year history, there have been only four coaches, all of whom have produced a win-loss percentage of at least .625. In 2008, Wolf surpassed legendary Russ Carr (202-106-31) for the longest tenure as Westmont’s head coach. In 31 years, Wolf has produced a record of 362-177-58 (.655).

Ahead of the 2022 season, Wolf has announced that this coming year, his 32nd, will be his last as head coach.

In 2020, Wolf navigated the Warriors through the COVID-19 pandemic that saw his club's "2020" season not begin until February of 2021. In the 2020-21 school year, the NAIA postponed all fall championships until the spring, meaning sports such as soccer would begin in some cases six months later than typical, with the National Championships occurring in March/April, as opposed to the regular December tournament. 

The Warriors kicked off their 2020 season on February 10, 2021, dropping a match 2-1 against Point Loma. The club would not lose again until the NAIA Opening Round. Westmont finished the season 7-2-1, going 5-0-1 in conference play. Westmont pulled off a rare feat in 2020, winning both the GSAC Regular Season Championship, and also the Conference Tournament.

Westmont allowed only two goals to conference opponents all season en route to an undefeated GSAC record, culminating in a redemptive win over OUAZ in the GSAC Championship. 

In the season prior, Ottawa defeated a Westmont team that hadn't lost a game to an NAIA opponent all year, handing the Warriors a 3-0 loss on Thorrington Field in the GSAC tournament semis. Wolf later stated the Warriors looked like a team that, "didn't love each other."

Fast forward nearly a year and a half later, and on April 16. 2021 the Warriors defeated the Spirit by a score of 2-1 to win the GSAC Championship, with the game-winner reaching the back of the net in the 90th minute.

When asked if his team looked like they loved each other on this occasion, Wolf laughed and said, "I would say there was lots of love on the field tonight."

Wolf went on to talk about the pride he felt for his program's history, saying, "I think these guys are built different and part of that is the crest that they inherit when they come here. We're excited and proud to represent all that came before us and hopefully we present a worthy addition ourselves.

In regards to winning that game in the final minute of action, Wolf said, "That was one of the most remarkable things I've seen in my coaching experience. It's hard to put into words, which is something I don't usually struggle with. I think the best way to put it is the craziness of the game matched the craziness of the year." 

Westmont's crazy year came to an end the following week, when they dropped their first game of the NAIA Opening Round by a score of 2-1 against Corban (Ore.).

From 2016-19, Wolf led the Warriors to four straight double-digit win seasons, including in 2019 when his team won the GSAC regular season title and reached the Round of 16 of the NAIA National Tournament. The Warriors went undefeated (7-0-1) in GSAC play for the first time in 30 seasons and began the season 6-0, the best start to a campaign in program history.

In 2016, Westmont won a GSAC regular season co-championship, while in 2017, the Warriors hoisted the GSAC Tournament trophy on their own Thorrington Field - defeating Hope International 2-1. The tournament championship secured Westmont's first berth to the NAIA Tournament since 2008.

Asked to describe himself as a coach, Wolf replied: "The phrase that I would most associate with myself is ‘motivation through affirmation.’ This isn’t because I am trying to be a good guy. The greatest joy I get in coaching is that I enjoy believing in people. I love getting behind people, telling them they can do the job we are asking them to do. I love encouraging, being positive. There are times to say hard things and be direct. But who I am is on the side of saying, ‘We can do this. You have the quality to accomplish this. I am going to believe in you all the way to the final whistle.’"

A graduate of Wheaton (Ill.), where he is a member of the Athletic Hall of Honor, Wolf helped lead the Thunder to a NCAA Division III National Championship in 1984 and was named an NCAA All-American in 1985. Following his graduation, he played one year in the Major Indoor Soccer League with the Chicago Sting and five years in the National Professional Soccer League with the Detroit Rockers, Indiana Kick, Memphis Storm, Illinois Thunder, and Chicago Power.

Wolf began his coaching career at Westmont in 1991 and has been named GSAC Coach of the Year five times (1993, 1994, 1995, 2016, 2019). Twice he received NSCAA Far West Region Coach of the Year honors, most recently in 2008. His coaching accomplishments include back-to-back 20 win seasons (1994-95), advancement to the NAIA National Tournament 10 times, nine Golden State Athletic Conferences championships and 21 players named as NAIA All-Americans.

"I think the coaching highlight for me," said Wolf, "is when I see a player give everything they have to give in a particular moment – a game, a training session, a fitness activity. When I see those moments in my players, that is the pinnacle (of coaching). I think I have matured enough over the years as a coach to appreciate those moments even in games we don’t win.

"When a team is really together, I love that," continued Wolf. "We are always trying to create culture and, ultimately, chemistry. Our core values are Competing, Communicating, Connecting and Composure. It doesn’t always happen, but  whenever you see a team that is really Connected, soccer is a beautiful game to watch."

The 2008 season proved to be an excellent example of team chemistry. After twelve games, the Warriors were faced with a 5-6-1 overall record and a conference mark of just 2-4-1. With the possibility of missing postseason play looming large, the Warriors finished 2-0-1 over their final three games to place sixth in the GSAC standings and earn the sixth seed in the GSAC Tournament.

Westmont won 3-2 on the road against third-seeded Vanguard in the first round. In the semifinals, the Warriors were hosted by number two seed Concordia and pulled off a 1-0 upset against the number seven team in the country. That set up a showdown with Azusa Pacific for the GSAC Championship and an automatic berth in the NAIA National Tournament.

Before the game could be played, a wildfire roared through the Westmont campus and surrounding community. Three soccer players lost their housing and Coach Wolf and his family lost their home. After a two-day delay, the Warriors traveled to Azusa and pulled off a stunning 2-0 victory in an emotionally charged game, earning the team’s first trip to the national championship in eight years.

Westmont was awarded an opening round home game and played Holy Names in front of 2,000 fans at UC Santa Barbara’s Harder Stadium. The Warriors won 3-2 in double overtime to advance to the NAIA Tournament final site, where they defeated Baker (Kan.) in the second round by a score of 1-0. The quarterfinals brought an end to the Warriors’ seven-game winning streak when they lost to Mount Vernon Nazarene (Ohio) by a score of 1-0. It was, however, a remarkable turnaround brought together by a close knit group of student-athletes and their coaching staff.

In 1993, Wolf received his Masters of Arts in Education with an emphasis in Physical Education from Azusa Pacific University. Academically, Wolf teaches kinesiology and physical education courses including the Psychology of Movement. He served as Westmont’s Athletic Director from 1998 to December of 2008. From 1996 to 1997, Wolf was an assistant coach in the Olympic Development Program.

Former president of the NAIA Men’s Soccer Coaches Association, Wolf cites his predecessors as establishing an example in giving back to the larger soccer community. "Russ Carr served as president of the same association," said Wolf. "He and Bob Fortosis have been wonderful role models for me. They made significant contributions to the sport of college soccer, and I feel a sense of responsibility to continue their legacy."

In another example of giving back to soccer, Wolf serves as a member of the Coaching Advisory Board for the Santa Barbara Soccer Club. Though he admits there is something of a personal involvement in this duty, as all of his children have participated on SBSC teams.

Wolf and his wife Jill, coincidentally the first All-American in the history of the Wheaton women's soccer program (and also a member of the Wheaton Athletic Hall of Honor), have five children - Tanner, who played for Westmont before graduating in 2016 and is now an assistant coach on the women's soccer staff at Point Loma University (where Coach Wolf's younger brother, Phil, is the men's soccer head coach), Lauren, who graduated from Wheaton College in 2018, Bailey, also a Wheaton College graduate (2020) and four-year member of the women's soccer team, Payton (21), and Jackson (18), who will be part of Westmont's Men's Soccer's defense beginning in the fall of 2021.