Marsha Harper - Women's Soccer Coach - Bowling Green State University Athletics

Marsha Harper

Title:
Assistant Women's Soccer Coach
Email:
mharper@bgsu.edu
Phone:
419-372-9617

Marsha Harper begins her first season as an assistant coach on the BGSU women's soccer coaching staff in 2015.

Both a leader on and off the field during her career on the field at both the University of Florida and South Florida, Harper joined the Falcons after serving as the assistant coach in 2014 at Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, La.

In her first season on the BGSU women’s soccer staff in 2015, the Falcons posted seven overall wins on the year, which is more than the previous two years combined, and finished tied for eighth overall in the Mid-American Conference, improving from 10th-place in 2014 and 12th place in 2013.

The Falcons registered a number of key wins in 2015. Bowling Green snapped two series' losing streaks in 2015, recording its first wins over Buffalo, the 2014 MAC Champions, and conference foe Eastern Michigan since 2011. BGSU’s victory at home on Aug. 21 against Chicago State was the team's first win in a season opener since 2004. The Orange and Brown also had a record-setting crowd of 803 at the season opener against Chicago State.

BGSU notched 29 goals in 2015, more than the last two seasons combined, after scoring 15 in 2014 and nine in 2013. The 29 goals scored is the most in a single season since 2008 (38). The Falcons’ 28 assists on the years is more than the previous two years combined (21).

The Falcons also scored 12 goals in MAC play in 2015, the most conference goals since 2010 when the team scored 16, and only allowed 30 goals overall, which is the least allowed since 2009 (28).

The Falcons finished with 18 home goals, the most since 2008, while BGSU netted a goal in seven straight contests, spanning from Aug. 21 against Chicago State to Sept. 13 against Valparaiso, for the first time since that same 2008 season.

In her lone year on the sidelines at NSU in 2014, Harper helped the Lady Demon soccer program continue to grow throughout the season, which concluded with three wins over their final four games.

The Denver, Colo., native was a student-athlete for the Florida Gators before she transferred to South Florida in 2011 to finish her soccer career and earn her degree. When Harper was at Florida, she earned the Arthur Ashe, Jr. Sports-Scholar Award and the Southeastern Conference Community Service Award. She was named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll from 2008-10.

While at USF, she was named as the team’s captain from 2011-13, and also served as a member of the Bull’s student-athlete advisory committee. Listed as a forward and defender, Harper tallied two goals and four assists in 47 games with South Florida.

After her playing career was over, she volunteered as an assistant coach in the spring and assisted with phases of the USF program with a focus on fundraising. During the spring, she also served as a staff coach for the Future 50 Soccer Camp where she helped coach girls in their development and tactical soccer skills. In the summer following, she helped the FC Tampa Rangers Soccer Club as the developmental director for the U13 club and an assistant coach for the U14 and U9 clubs.

Harper also has two stints in personal training. The first was in the summer of 2011 when she was a personal training intern at Fitness Solutions Tampa and the second in the summer of 2013 as strength and conditioning intern at USF. As an intern with the Bulls, she worked with football, men’s and women’s soccer, softball, track, cross country and volleyball.

Harper earned both her bachelor’s degree in applied science and her master’s degree in exercise science at South Florida.

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