California Lutheran University Women’s Soccer – Coach Frank Marino

On today’s episode, I speak with Coach Marino from the Cal Lutheran Women’s Program. We talk about recruiting while on a national championship run. He describes the idyllic location that is also home to professional teams. Lastly, we discuss how building authentic relationships and a positive culture is what truly leads a team to success. Learn more about California Lutheran University Women’s Soccer.

Matt: [00:00:00] Hi, everybody. Welcome to discover college soccer today. I’m lucky enough to be joined by coach frank from division three women’s national championship. Cal Lutheran. Welcome coach. 

Coach: Thank you. Thanks for having me. 

Matt: Yeah. Thanks for being here again. Congrats on, on a great fall season, uh, coming home with all the hardware.

Coach: No complaints at all. Absolutely. Uh, one of the best experiences I’ve ever had in my life. 

Matt: So I can imagine, I can imagine. Well, um, I always like to start off talking about recruiting, you know, now that we’re here in January, you, you probably got a, uh, off to a later start than you usually do, uh, having going all the way to the national championship, but, you know, what, um, what does your recruiting timeline look like right now, especially as a division three on the women’s side is your class of 24.

Pretty much done. You still working on it. You looking at 25 kind of what’s your normal kind of timeline look like each year. 

Coach: So you’re exactly right. We’re pretty much done with 24. we’re really focused in on 25. we got a little bit of a late start. As you mentioned, we missed some recruiting events because we were playing.

So we, we do feel a little pressure of playing a little bit of catch up. Um, in that area, as far as getting people, uh, interested, uh, we did just have an ID camp. So we were able to have a good turnout for that. And, uh, um, you know, that that was super, super cool. Uh, probably [00:01:30] easiest, uh. What I’ve ever had with getting people to sign up, it wasn’t, I didn’t have to really work at it.

We filled the thing up pretty quickly and we had an extra bonus, you know, angel city fc trains here on campus. So, coach tweet came by and said, hi to the players and we actually used the field. They train on because our new stadium turf is being done and we’ve had some. Rain, believe it or not in California.

So, uh, let’s put us back a little bit as far as the timeline went. So we were kind of, uh, looking for a field on campus to use and they weren’t gracious enough to let us use it. 

Matt: Oh, that’s awesome. Well, you talk about, you missed a, maybe a couple of events you would have attended. What, what are the events that you like to go to that are kind of on your must hit list each year.

Coach: Yeah, we would have been at the event. Obviously, back in November, we would hit the event that was here in California about an hour or so from us. So those 2 are sort of the big ones that we miss. We’re playing both those weekends. Um, and really wanted to. The hit it hard on the 25. We’ve got a pretty good list going.

Um, but, you know, a little bit of catch up with not being able to see them play players were very understanding, obviously, of the situation and now, you know, looking forward, we’ve got, you know, obviously, um. Hopefully, you know, Texas event, we’re going to try to get to, uh, the Las Vegas player showcase will be on our list.

Uh, Arizona in the [00:03:00] spring, um, you know, may even spend a couple of days at the mayor’s cup in Vegas, um, uh, to try to see some, some kids we normally wouldn’t see. 

Matt: Okay. Well, hopefully I’ll see you in Vegas at the players. We’ll, we’ll, we’ll be the coming all the way from Florida. So, uh, so we’ll see how that goes.

Awesome. Well, you, you mentioned your ID camp. How important are your ID camps and, and maybe ones that your staff or you go to other, other colleges or places, the, the for profit camps that are putting them on, like, how important are those in your overall recruiting process? 

Coach: I really think for us, the most important 1 is the ones we host here because they get to get a real experience of the campus.

They get to be coached by the coaches. They get to meet our players who are walking around doing the tours and and hanging out during the session. So they can kind of get a feel talk to some of the players. Those are really important for getting a great feel for the campus understanding our culture, how we do things.

I think that’s important, you know, we do get out to some of the other camps. I think there’s some good ones out there. Um, but it’s also a little bit more difficult. You have lots of kids at those camps. You don’t get to work with them for a long period of time. Sometimes they’re a little bit more challenging.

I would say, um, than some others. The ones that clubs put on sometimes are nice because you’re, you’re, you’re going down there. You’re, you’re at a specific club. Um, you get to work with them for a decent amount of time, and they get to watch them [00:04:30] play. Those, those are pretty good. I’ve done a few of those.

Um, but yeah, they are important in the process, especially if you’re not on an ECNL or a, or a GA, uh, team. I think those are important for players to get to. Those are a chance to be seen and an opportunity for us coaches to get to see play. Yeah, absolutely. 

Matt: Well, whether it’s at one of these events or at an ID camp, kind of what makes up your, your hierarchy of things that you’re looking for when you offer a player, whether that’s on the field stuff or off the field stuff.

Coach: So, you know, it’s a combination of both. I think you make, you made a great point. We look at both. We really believe that the cultural aspect of the recruit, the piece here is really important to us. We have really good kids, good students. Um, we really want to build authentic relationships amongst our players and really true togetherness.

And I think you have. To have the right people to make that happen and make that work. So not only are we looking for the best absolute soccer players we can find. Um, we’re also looking for the best people we can find. And, uh, you know, people say, why were we successful this year? We probably weren’t the most talented team in division 3, but we were the best team in division 3.

And what I mean by that is, you know, culturally, we, we just had a grit. A grind about us, we were playing for each other to the very end of the game. The number of games we won the final 5 minutes or tied in the final 5 minutes this year, I think was the most we’ve ever had. So you just just that type of thing was because they were going to play so hard for each other till the very end.

So [00:06:00] that’s important. Type of kid that we’re getting here. Um, I don’t know that that’s part of the question. No, most of our roster is made up of, of ECNL or GA kids for the most part. Um, we’re getting a lot of, I’d say, D1 level kids, but more of your mid major D1 level kid. You know, that, that’s sort of our, our, our niche.

They’re kids that You know, one high academics, they want a small environment and they want to win. I mean, there’s so much value on winning the, you know, people chase the D one D two things sometimes and they missed the part about living in a great area and winning. Those are two really important things in the college experience.

Matt: Can’t argue with that coach. Can’t argue with that. Um, well, let’s talk a little bit more, uh, about the school. Um, you know, there’s some folks probably not, not familiar, uh, with Cal Lutheran. So give me some of the highlights. What you think is kind of some awesome things about the school. Maybe some things we wouldn’t even know just by going through the website.

Coach: Yeah, um, you know, 1 of the big things the schools and probably 1 of the most desirable places in the country to live. We’re halfway between Santa Barbara in Los Angeles. 30 minutes from Malibu. Beach is close. Weather’s about 70 all year long. So that that aspect is is great. The other piece is, you know, we’ve had 2 professional teams on campus, which is something that maybe everybody doesn’t know the Rams.

I trained here since since they moved to Los Angeles, they’re moving out of here in the next within the next year to a new facility. They’re building an angel city. F. C. trains here as well. They’re they’re practice facilities [00:07:30] here. So we’ve had, you know, lots of. Attention to the school, because we’ve got these pro, uh, teams here.

The other piece is we have, we have really, really great facilities. Our athletic facilities are are are all newer. Super nice. We’re redoing the turf on the stadium. Um, our fitness center, all those aspects, locker rooms. They’re really, really nice. Um, I’d say near D1 level, um, facilities. The other aspect is, we just, we have some really great majors, exercise science, new science building communications.

Um, uh, obviously, the liberal arts aspect, the teaching aspect, but the big 1 that lately is we added support management and, um, that 1 is has grown. We have a lot of students in it. And now we’re adding a graduate program in it as well. So, um, that’s been a huge aspect of it. Last pieces. All the sciences we’re, we’re right next to engine.

Um, engines about 5 minutes from here, it’s the largest pharmaceutical company in the US. So lots of opportunities for the science majors, internships and things like that. So we really have, um, you know, a good variety of majors, uh, small classes, 15 to 1 ratio, um, in a great area. And then, of course, the things that kids like, we have the habit.

I don’t know. You know, the habit is. On campus, it’s a burger place, West Coast thing. I think not quite in and out, but nice, uh, Starbucks and Jamba juice. So those sort of help with, uh, keeping the kids fed as well. All right. 

Matt: Well, you know, [00:09:00] obviously you talk about high academics and. And it’s a student athlete experience, right?

So, specifically, how do your players really balance the demands of being a student as well as an athlete and kind of what support systems as a school offer to help ensure success? 

Coach: Yeah, it’s a great question. Um, you know, we, part of part of the process of recruiting really good students that helps, you know, we have really driven students at 3.

1st semester, which is pretty remarkable considering the number of people on a women’s soccer team. So, I’m pretty pleased about that, but our school is great. We offer free tutoring in the library every single day. So kids can walk in there any subject area and there’s tutors available to support them on that.

You know, that the small class aspect helps the professors are available to students. They meet with students. They have great office hours. That’s the big piece from a mental health standpoint. We have caps. They even come over, which is a support system for anybody who’s having any sort of. Difficulties, they actually come over to the athletic side of campus once a week.

So people can drop in and get any support that they need. And then honestly, you know, some of the great thing about our school and a lot of the students being in similar majors, their teammates are great to help them with tutoring and support them in those classes. Taken a lot of the professors in the past so they, they have a good understanding of what’s expected in those classes.

So, you know, we, we really do, uh, the last piece [00:10:30] is, uh, us coaches get reports every two weeks. So if we have any students, student athletes that drop below two, uh, 2.0 or have a less than a C in any class is what I should say, we get a notification and, um, and that allows us to, to reach out to that student and make sure they’re, they’re taking advantage of the free resources we have on campus.

Matt: Okay, awesome. Well, let’s take a step back. Maybe call it October timeframe. You’re in the heart of that conference season. Can you walk me through what a typical week would look like for your players in terms of winter classes and meals and practice and game canes? And what does all that look like? 

Coach: Yeah, I mean, kind of, you know.

Follow up to the last question 1 of the things that’s great with us is we practice in the evenings. So they are done with their classes by the time class starts. So we start at 6 PM and we have light. So it’s really nice. Students are most students are doing the classes by 2. so typical typical week. We play Wednesday, Saturday here in the conference pretty nice set up a couple of days off in between the games.

So, we practice Monday, Tuesday. Game Wednesday practice, Thursday, Friday game, Saturday off Sunday. That’s a typical week. If we have a Wednesday, Saturday schedule, they’ll have a sports performance sessions, you know, strength and conditioning, whatever it may be at least 1 string that week in the morning.

So that’ll be a morning session prior. Usually this class is starting. So it’s probably 7 to 8 in the morning, 630 to 730 in the morning, somewhere in that range. Uh, once a week, most students started either 8 or [00:12:00] 9 with classes. Most of them are done by 2. they have a lunch break in the middle there. Uh, I will tell you, I don’t call a lot of our student athletes between 2 and 5.

that seems to be nap time, um, in most cases, wake them up if I call them during that time, but they, they seem to be, you know, getting some rest in or studying during those times. Uh, then they’ll come over training room, get some treatment if they need it, kind of hang out, go to the locker room, hang out with with their teammates.

And then we’re out of practice at 6, um, done by usually around 730. most nights. 1 of the benefits California will do a pool, a pool recovery session. So they’re going swimming pool after practice for some recovery out of here by 8 o’clock, eat dinner and study, get to bed and do it again. 

Matt: All right. Well, let’s let’s shift gears.

Talk a little bit more about the team side of things. And well, we talked recruiting, but is there is there a roster size that you find is ideal that you guys are trying to hit each year?

Coach: We try to keep it, you know, high 20s. Low thirties would be, be, be our, our goal. We’ve been a little higher with since coven a lot of 5th year kids.

So, you know, we’ve ran in more of the mid thirties. Um, that should come down probably after this year. 1 more year. We’ll probably be in the thirties and then probably get down and back back down to the high 20s. We, we. You know, what people don’t realize they say about colleges, you get to play 11 11 practice because you actually have a whole field when you when you’re a club in high school.

They never have a full field. They have a quarter of a field. So they never [00:13:30] really get an opportunity to do that. So, we want to have at least 28 players, you know, you think about this, if you want to occasionally play 11 11 practice, that’s 22 players. You got a couple backup keepers. That takes you to. 24 players, then you got to have a couple of subs for each team.

There you get you at the 28 real quick. Uh, and then you want to, you know, factor, you’re gonna have a few injuries. So you want to have a few, few extra bodies around. So, you know, that’s sort of what we’re looking at. Um, as far as rosters goes, we don’t have any roster size requirements here. You know, as far as that goes, the school’s not saying, Hey, you got to have X amount of kids.

Um, you know, they want to want us to do what’s best for our team to be successful. No, that’s, that’s, that’s excellent. 

Matt: Well, The other part of a roster is the staff, right? So can you talk to me about how big is your staff? What role does everybody play? Are there other staff, maybe in the athletic department that help out with the team, what does that all look like?

Coach: Yeah, we’re really well supported, you know, as far as I’d like to go. Um, I’ve got a total of 4 part time assistance. Some are less part time than others. I would say, you know, um, you know, my, my, the top assistant is Brenton frame. He. He has been here for 4 years. Uh, I had the pleasure of coaching him when he was a kid.

So it’s. It’s been a full circle, um, aspect, uh, you know, I’ve known him since he was 13, so he moved back from Northern Cal, went to Sonoma, um, state and ended up coming back here. He’s been great. Uh, Shannon Pennington has been with our program since before me. I, I [00:15:00] started in 2005. She started in 99. As an assistant, she’s a teacher for a living, but it’s just part time coach.

It’s been part of the program. She played in the program, so she’s really great with just all the traditions and everything that’s happened from the time for her. I think this was probably the person that got the most out of this experience was her because she has seen everything from, you know, player, grad assistant, assistant coach, which she’s been through.

Uh, you know, she’s been the assistant to three head coaches here. So for her, it was incredible experience. Um, then we have Chloe Montano. She’s been here for a couple of years. She’s a local player from our area. Um, we were fortunate enough to get that position on on a grant and, uh, women’s sports foundation grant.

So, um, she started here with that and and she’s stayed since she’s done a great job. And then our goalkeeper coach, Tony Castro, he stepped in. We literally had our goalkeeper coach, uh, You know, leave for for, uh, like a real job, I guess not a part time soccer job for a P. T. job and about a week before the season started.

And in California, you can’t hire anybody real quick. It takes takes a bit of time. Um, so Tony stepped in. He was a men’s goalkeeper coach and. Ended up working with both programs. Um, he’s not complaining now since he was able to be part of a national championship. Uh, I think he, he really enjoyed it and wants to keep doing it.

So, uh, he can’t, he came from Cal State Northridge where he was an assistant coach there and, uh, really fortunate to have somebody as our [00:16:30] goalkeeper coach, but the qualifications that he had. Yeah, sounds like it. Those are assistance and then we’re, I think, from a division 3 standpoint, you know, we have some full time sports performance coaches.

And I think Maddie, Maddie Greece is the 1 that works with us. She was a player in our program graduate in 2019 and then stayed on as a strength and condition coach with us. We have a soccer ex soccer, you know, Regals alum as our strength and condition coach, which is absolutely fantastic. But they have, you know, a full time people down there and a couple of part time people down there.

So, we really, really do a great job with sports performance and that’s a huge aspect and 3 full time athletic trainer. So we were. We’re well supported for our athletes here. And I think that’s, you know, some, that’s where it varies a little bit in division three. And I think here they really do a good job of supporting, uh, the athletes, um, uh, in our program.

Matt: Yeah, it sounds like it. That’s great. Well, now to you specifically as, as the head man, uh, how would you describe kind of Your style of coaching, the style of play that you’re looking to implement and the culture you’re looking to implement. 

Coach: Yeah. So from a soccer standpoint, you know, we were definitely, you know, we, we focus on being a possession based team.

We, we want to build from the back when possible. Um, although I think modern soccer, you have to be good in transition. So you have to be able to deal with transitional moments. So from a soccer standpoint, we want to play the best soccer we possibly can. We do [00:18:00] want players that are technical, good in possession that can play, play that style.

Um, we want some good 1v1 players up top. You know, we’re definitely specific on what we’re doing within how we play from an overall standpoint. I would, I would say, um. I’m definitely a positive coach. You know, somebody that believes that it’s, it’s better to be positive with people. I think energy is contagious.

The more we can have positive energy out there, the more the players are going to have positive energy. So, I think it really is the coach to help drive that every day at practice. We talk about playing college soccer is. Is a get to not a got to, you know, you get to be able to do this and every day we’re out there.

It’s, it’s, it should be a day that we get to enjoy. And, uh, we, that’s really the mentality that we talk about. The bigger piece of that is we really work at building the authentic relationships. We really believe that, uh, in order to be successful, I did a thesis in college on my master’s thesis, action, education on female motivation and 1 of the biggest aspects of.

Of that is, is creating this connected environments. And in order to do that, it can’t be fake. So people sometimes people think team building is playing these games and stuff. And it really isn’t, you know, it’s, it’s really about how do you build relationship? How do you do things off the field that actually get people to really understand each other?

We’re a really diverse team. And I think it’s important that. You know, we, we can continue to build those [00:19:30] relationships through the activities that we do. So we spend a lot of time on the off the field aspect. I truly believe we, we are not connected off the field. We’re not gonna win on the field. And I can tell you from, you know, being here for as many years as I have, the teams that are truly connected off the field have been our best teams.

They may not have been our most talented teams, but they’ve been our best teams. 

Matt: Oh, that’s, that’s great. Well, coach, you’ve given us a lot of info. Don’t want to take up too much of your time. Got one last question for you. And that is if you had one bit of advice, one piece of information that you, you wish every recruit would know every family prospective college player.

What would that be? 

Coach: Uh, pick, pick the school first. Really look at where, where you want to go to school. The school is the most important aspect. The soccer aspect is absolutely a bonus because so many variables could change that are outside of your control. You know, whether that’s, you know, you get hurt.

Coaching changes, whatever happens in the landscape. It’s really important that you pick a place that you’re going to be happy. Here’s here’s the thing that it’s really hard as a 17 or 18 year old to think about, but there’s a statistic out there. It’s more slightly more than 50 percent of all all college students.

End up living for majority of their life in the same area that they went to college. Now, that’s makes logical sense. You’re going to go to internships. You’re going to get a job. Um, so that you don’t realize when you’re going to college, you might be picking a life decision, right? Someplace where you might end up living for a good portion of your [00:21:00] life.

So you really have to think about those aspects when deciding to go if you choose it just on. The soccer aspect, those are the ones we see in the transfer portal, right? Those are the ones that aren’t as happy with with their experience and what they’re doing. I really think it’s important that, um, you know, they, they pick the school 1st, and if they can do that, they’re going to be happy in most cases.

You know, there’s 1 more thing if it’s okay, I wanted to add, we were talking about the support aspect earlier and I didn’t mention. I, the 1 other areas, I think we’re again well supported. We have. The GPS catapult system with our players, which for division 3 is not something that everybody has. So we’re really monitoring their training loads.

And the last aspect, we have a wellness survey every single day that that they fill out. So, we’re, we’re really looking not only on their physical being, but also where they’re at for mental stress, their mood. Things like that lastly, it’s part of sort of the team building aspect. Uh, each grade level reads a book.

So we’re reading some books and all those books are really part of the building blocks of our culture and the foundation of building those authentic relationships. So, I wanted to expand upon that. I didn’t didn’t get so get to do so earlier. I kind of. Kind of lost my train of thought there, but I wanted to make sure we mentioned that as well.

But, you know, students don’t get the last thing I’ll say on the recruiting piece. Don’t get caught up in the division. 1, thing or the thing. Pick the school that fits. You also pick a place where you’re going to play and you’re going to win [00:22:30] because those aspects are really important to the experience and kids get caught up in the, in the label.

We have a lot of kids from Southern California. They’ll pick a mid major D1 and. The middle of nowhere, I’ll call it or Midwest or someplace where they’re not used to that, that a Southern California, you know, kid would look at, I can predict those, the ones that end up back in the portal, because they’re just not used to living in those places.

It’s not a place they can see themselves living and then they end up coming back to California. Yep, it happens. And, uh, 

Matt: put the portals. Chuck full of them these days, but, uh, well coach, great insights, great information can see why you guys, uh, kind of, kind of built that squad and put that team together to win that national championship.

So congrats again. And, uh, hopefully next time we see you, you’ll be, you’ll be defending it in the, in the final four again. 

Coach: I hope so. It’s gonna, it’s gonna be a, it’s gonna be a tough year coming up, but, uh, we’re going to do our best. 

Matt: Sounds good. And I’ll see you in Vegas.

Coach: All right. Okay. I look forward to meeting you in person.

All right. Take care. Have a good one. Have a good day.