Following the departure of Greg Henschel to UW-Milwaukee, Ryan Quamme assumed the position of women’s head soccer coach. He will also act as the interim coach for the men’s program until a new head coach is found.

“I want to thank coach Henschel for the opportunity to come on staff four years ago,” Quamme said. “This has been a professional goal of mine for quite a while. We have a great group of student athletes on both teams and I’m very excited to continue working with them.”

Athletic Director Paul Plinske said hiring Quamme just made sense as he was the perfect man for the job.

“We feel we have an outstanding coach in Ryan Quamme,” Plinske said.  “He is a focused leader with great knowledge of the game, regional recruiting ties and the ability to build a strong, fundamentally sound team. Simply put, he’s a great match for our women’s program.”

Quamme has 13 years of coaching experience, the last four coming at UW-Whitewater, ranging from developmental youth leagues to the collegiate level.

Henschel leaves the women’s team with a record of 126-91-13, won back-to-back WIAC titles in 2010 and 2011 and lead the team to its first ever NCAA Tournament appearance in 2011.

Expectations are high for the team this fall and even after losing four seniors, Quamme is ready for the challenge.

“One of the reasons you coach is for the challenges,” Quamme said. “This might be the most talented returning group we’ve had in my four years here and I’m very excited about this team’s potential.”

Quamme said his biggest adjustment will be handing over the reins of the men’s team to someone else. While he will still be involved as an administrator, he will be exclusively coaching the women.

“It will be tough not being around both teams, and it’ll be tough letting them go,” Quamme said. “It’s a good group of guys and I’m attached to them, but I’m confident we will find the right person to take over.”