DWU Athletic Department

Jeremy Tosaya
Head Men’s Soccer Coach
Wayne State College ’03
Wayne State College ’05
jetosaya@dwu.edu
605-995-2905

A new chapter begins for Dakota Wesleyan University men’s soccer in 2009 with the hiring of new Tiger head coach Jeremy Tosaya. Tosaya brings impressive college coaching credentials to Mitchell, and he is also already familiar with the Great Plains Athletic Conference, the region and the NAIA. The DWU athletic department is excited to add Tosaya to its staff.

Hired in December 2008, Tosaya officially began at Dakota Wesleyan in early January. He replaces former head coach Kevin Farley, who resigned in August 2008, and former Tiger player Kyle Cathey, who served as interim head coach for the 2008 season.

Tosaya inherits a DWU team that finished 5-9-1 overall and 3-8-1 in the GPAC in 2008. Dakota Wesleyan tied for the final spot in the GPAC Postseason Men’s Soccer Tournament, but the Tigers didn’t hold the tiebreaker. DWU will return a pair of All-Conference players to a team that only loses two seniors to graduation.

In addition to his coaching duties at Dakota Wesleyan, Tosaya is also a head coach for the South Dakota Olympic Development 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. His experience in the GPAC and recruiting in the region will be valuable as he begins his first season at Dakota Wesleyan.

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’s of science education 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 joins the Dakota Wesleyan University men’s and women’s soccer programs this season as the Tigers’ graduate assistant coach. Ponchak’s first foray into collegiate coaching comes on the heels of a successful playing career at Asbury College (Ky.), where he was the team’s goalkeeper.

At Dakota Wesleyan, Ponchak will be the primary goalkeeper coach for both the men’s and women’s teams. 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.