Theresa Romagnolo 2017-18 Women's Soccer Staff

Four seasons at Notre Dame: 51-21-13
Seven seasons overall: 76-43-16

Notre Dame Highlights

• 2016 ACC Regular Season Champions
  
• Four NCAA Championship Appearances
  
• 2014 & 2017 NCAA Sweet 16 Appearances
  
• 2014 & 2016 ACC Championship Semifinalist
  
• 3 NWSL College Draft Picks
  
• 18 All-ACC Selections
  
• Sandra Yu – 2017 United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-America First Team
• Cari Roccaro – 2015 CoSIDA Academic All-America First Team
  
• Katie Naugthon – 2015 CoSIDA Academic All-American Second Team; Byron V. Kanaley Award Winner

Theresa Romagnolo (pronounced tuh-RAY-suh roh-muh-KNOW-loh) is entering her fifth season as head coach at Notre Dame after taking the reins of the tradition-rich Fighting Irish women’s soccer program on March 19, 2014. 

Romagnolo is just the fourth head coach in the 27-year history of Notre Dame women’s soccer, and she takes over for Randy Waldrum, who stepped down in January 2014 following 15 seasons to become head coach of the Houston Dash in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL).

In her first season with the Irish, Romagnolo led the Irish to its first appearance in then-four-team Atlantic Coast Conference Championship. The Irish also extended their NCAA Championship appearance streak to 25 with berths in each of her first four seasons, keeping the nation’s second-longest active streak (1993-2017) alive (North Carolina is first, 1982-2017).

The Irish went 33-10-2 at home during Romagnolo’s first four seasons, including an 11-1-0 mark in 2015.

Romagnolo tutored 18 All-ACC selections in her first four years at the helm of the Irish, as well as an NSCAA All-American in Cari Roccaro (2015 Third Team), United Soccer Coaches All-American in Sandra Yu and eight NSCAA All-Region picks. Roccaro and classmate Katie Naughton (’15) were also named CoSIDA Academic All-Americans in 2015 before each being selected in the first two rounds of the National Women’s Soccer League College Draft in January 2016. Furthermore, Sandra Yu was selected to the United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-America First Team in 2017 and eventually drafted No. 8 overall by Portland Thorns FC in the 2017 NWSL Draft.

THE DARTMOUTH, STANFORD & SAN DIEGO YEARS

Dartmouth Highlights (Head Coach)

• 25-22-3 Overall Record (2010-12)
  
• 2012 Ivy League Runner-Up
  
• 16 All-Ivy Selections
  
• 3 NSCAA All-Region Picks
  

Romagnolo came to Notre Dame following a superb three-year run at Dartmouth that saw her guide the Hanover, New Hampshire, school to 25 wins, including a 13-4 record in 2012, posting the most victories by a Big Green squad since 2000, as well as the second-best winning percentage (.765) and third-most wins in one season in program history. In addition, she led Dartmouth to a pair of upper-division Ivy League finishes in her three seasons, including a 6-1 record and second-place showing in 2012, with the team’s six league wins matching the best by any Big Green squad in the previous two decades.

Romagnolo also cultivated a strong reputation for player development while at Dartmouth, coaching 16 All-Ivy selections, as well as four National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) all-region choices, the first for the program since 2009.

Stanford Highlights (Assistant Coach)

• 70-4-3 Overall Record (2008-10)
  
• 3 NCAA Women’s College Cup Appearances
  
• 2 NCAA Runner-Up Finishes (2009, 2010)
  
• 2 Pac-10 Championships
  
• Coached 3 Hermann trophy recipients (Kelley O’Hara, 2009; Christen Press, 2010; Teresa Noyola, 2011)
  

Prior to her arrival at Darthmouth, Romagnolo was widely recognized as one of the nation’s premier assistant coaches during her three-year tenure (2008-10) at Stanford under head coach Paul Ratcliffe. While in Palo Alto, Romagnolo (who also served as a volunteer assistant in 2002) helped the Cardinal to two NCAA national title games, three NCAA College cup appearances and two Pac-10 Conference (now Pac-12) championships.

In addition, Romagnolo worked closely with Stanford’s national recruiting efforts, helping to bring numerous award-winning standouts to The Farm and coaching several other notable All-Americans, including three consecutive Hermann Trophy recipients in current U.S. Women’s National Team players Kelley O’Hara (2009) and Christen Press (2010), and current Mexico National Team member Teresa Noyola (2011, won Hermann Trophy season after Romagnolo departed).

San Diego Highlights (Assistant Coach)

• 54-40-10 Overall Record (2003-07)
  
• 3 NCAA Women’s College Cup Appearances
  

Romagnolo came to Stanford after thriving in a five-year stint (2003-07) as the top assistant coach at San Diego, where she helped the Toreros to three NCAA Championship appearances, including a 15-3-3 record and No. 9 national ranking during her final season (2007).

COLLEGIATE AND PROFESSIONAL CAREER

Washington Playing Career Highlights

• Four-time All-Pac-10 Selection
  
• 2000 Pac-10 Champion
  
• 3 NCAA Women’s College Cup Appearances
  
• 2000 NSCAA Scholar All-America
  
• 3-time Pac-10 All-Academic Team
  

Before embarking on her coaching career, Romagnolo was a standout midfielder at the University of Washington from 1997-2000. Under her maiden name of Theresa Wagner, she was a four-time all-Pac-10 selection and was instrumental in the Huskies’ first Pac-10 title and first-ever No. 1 ranking in 2000. UW also made three NCAA Championship appearances in her four seasons during Romagnolo’s career.

What’s more, Romagnolo remains among the top five on numerous UW career statistical charts, including points (80 – second), goals (27 – tied-third) and assists (26 – third), while her four-goal/nine-point match at Oregon and four-assist outing against Eastern Washington (both in her senior season in 2000) remain tops in Husky women’s soccer history.

Romagnolo graduated from the University of Washington in 2001 with her bachelor’s degree in business.

San Jose CyberRays Highlights

• 2001 WUSA Champion
  

She went on to enjoy a three-year career with the San Jose CyberRays of the Women’s United Soccer Association (the first of two leagues that preceded the NWSL), helping the Bay Area franchise to the WUSA title in 2001. Among her teammates in San Jose were former Notre Dame All-American and 2001 WUSA Goalkeeper of the Year LaKeysia Beene (’00) and former Fighting Irish all-region defender Kelly Lindsey (’01).

A native of Edmonds, Washington, Romagnolo and her husband, Alex, are proud parents of two young daughters, Sierra and Giovanna. The Romagnolo family now makes its home in the South Bend area.