Wartburg men’s and women’s soccer coach Jim Conlon announced his resignation from the Wartburg College soccer programs Monday, March 10 to take the head women’s coaching position at Washington University in St. Louis.

Conlon was hired in 2000 as the men’s soccer coach.

 “My goal when I got here, as I told Gary [Grace], was I wanted to increase our reputation and year in and year out be contenders for the conference title,” Conlon said.

Conlon’s tenure on the sideline included three men’s Iowa Conference regular season championships, three Iowa Conference tournament championships, five NCAA Div. III national tournament appearances, three Sweet 16 appearances, and an Elite Eight appearance in 2004, along with a 108-48-8 overall record.

Conlon coached the women’s team to the program’s first Iowa Conference tournament championship in 2007. The Knights were runners-up in the IIAC regular season race in 2005 and 2007.

This past season also marked the first NCAA Div. III national tournament appearance for the women’s squad, eventually advancing to the Sweet 16. During his time with the women’s program, Conlon compiled a 96-57-5 record.

Soccer background a strong base for Conlon’s move
Conlon graduated from Loras College in 1998 where he was a member of the Duhawks’ soccer team. He spent two years at Loras as an assistant coach and was then hired to coach at Wartburg.

Conlon entered the Wartburg soccer programs during times of struggle but managed to rejuvenate both programs and left them better than when he showed up.

“Coach Conlon did a great job developing our soccer programs. The progress both programs made throughout the past eight years is remarkable and very impressive,” Rick Willis, director of athletics, said.

Conlon is stepping into the head coaching position at Washington University, a member of the University Athletic Association, to replace former Bears head coach Wendy Dillinger. Dillinger was named the new head women’s soccer coach at Iowa State University.

Conlon inherits a WashU program that has become known on the national soccer stage. In the past six seasons under Conlon’s predecessor, the Bears had an overall record of 86-25-8 and were ranked No. 9 in the nation last year.

Washington University also earned four University Athletic Association championships. The Bears also made four trips to the NCAA Div. III tournament in the past six seasons, including their own berth in the Sweet 16 this fall.

“Most coaches don’t get to make a coaching change to a winning team. Washington University has had a winning team for years in a lot of sports,” Conlon said. “It’s an interesting opportunity in that respect.”

Wartburg College is currently searching for a new coach to step into both the men’s and women’s coaching positions.