DWU Athletic Department

Jeremy Tosaya
Head Men’s Soccer Coach
Wayne State College ’03
Wayne State College ’05
NSCAA Advanced National Diploma
USSF National “C” License
jetosaya@dwu.edu
605-995-2905

Jeremy Tosaya started a new chapter for the Dakota Wesleyan University men’s soccer team when he took over the program in 2009. His first season was one of transition, but he enters his second year with several key returners and new recruits and a sense of pride surrounding Tiger soccer.

Tosaya’s squad finished the 2009 season 4-11-1 overall and 2-9-1 in the Great Plains Athletic Conference. Seven of those losses, however, were by a single goal, so his team enters the 2010 season hungry for redemption. Tosaya coached two All-GPAC Honorable Mention players in 2009. The Tigers finished 11th in the league last season.

In addition to his coaching duties at Dakota Wesleyan, Tosaya is a member of the state coaching staff for the South Dakota Olympic Development Program (ODP), has served as a member of the Region II ODP coaching staff and is an associate state staff coach for the South Dakota State Soccer Association coaching education program.

Before accepting the head coaching position at DWU, Tosaya had spent the previous three seasons as the men’s and women’s soccer head coach at Southwestern Assemblies of God University in Waxahachie, Texas. Tosaya started the women’s program from scratch, and he led the men’s team to its first Red River Athletic Conference Tournament appearance in five years.

During his tenure at Southwestern Assemblies, Tosaya coached a total of six All-RRAC selections, 11 NCCAA All-Central Region selections and 17 NAIA Scholar-Athletes. He was also voted the RRAC Men’s Soccer Chairperson, and he was one of 23 national raters for NAIA men’s soccer.

Tosaya spent 2005 in the GPAC as the head men’s soccer coach at Briar Cliff University in Sioux City, Iowa. During his season with the Chargers, he coached three All-GPAC selections and a pair of NAIA Scholar-Athletes.

Tosaya also served as an assistant women’s soccer coach at his alma mater, Wayne State College, in Wayne, Neb., from 2002-04. He has also coached at numerous soccer camps and clinics in Texas, Nebraska and Iowa. Soccer has been a constant in Tosaya’s life, including an overseas experience as the child of missionaries, which is where he first learned the game.

Tosaya’s playing experience includes two years of varsity soccer at Nebraska Christian College and two years of club soccer at Wayne State College. He received a bachelor’s degree in psychology in 2003 and a Master of Science Education degree in exercise science in 2005.

Tosaya and his wife, Ashley, live in Mitchell.

Brandon Ponchak
Assistant Soccer Coach
Asbury College ’07
brponcha@dwu.edu

Brandon Ponchak enters his second season as the assistant coach for both the Dakota Wesleyan University men’s and women’s soccer programs. Ponchak serves as the primary goalkeeper coach for both teams, and his expertise brought success to the Tigers in 2009.

Ponchak, who had a successful playing career at Asbury College (Ky.) where he was the goalkeeper, helped coach the 2009 DWU women’s program to a 17-4-1 record, its first-ever GPAC regular-season and tournament titles and its first-ever trip to the NAIA National Tournament. He also played a key role in helping sophomore goalkeeper Danielle Richardson win the GPAC’s Co-Defensive Player-of-the-Year award.

Both DWU head men’s coach Jeremy Tosaya and head women’s coach Dale Roden praised Ponchak’s knowledge of the keeper position and his passion for soccer. A four-year starter in the net for Asbury, Ponchak already has some impressive playing and coaching credentials. He also played keeper at the Gothia Cup in Gothenburg, Sweden, for SportsTours USA, and he had a standout goalkeeper career at Morgan High School in McConnelsville, Ohio.

Before joining the DWU soccer staff, Ponchak was the head coach for the Lexington (Ky.) Christian Academy Middle School boys’ and girls’ teams. He has also worked as a goalkeeper coach at the high school level and at numerous soccer camps. He has a NSCAA Regional and State Goalkeeping Diploma and his USSF “E” License.

A McConnelsville, Ohio, native, Ponchak received a bachelor’s degree in Bible/theology: pre-seminary from Asbury College in 2007. At Dakota Wesleyan, Ponchak will pursue a Master of Arts degree in education administration.

Ponchak and his wife, Kellie, were married in July and live in Mitchell.