Head Coach Jim Schneiderhahn talks to his players before their exhibition game against Ottawa Friday evening at the ESU Pitch. Megan Gartner/ The Bulletin
What is your personal background?
I grew up playing soccer, baseball, football and basketball in St. Louis. Soccer is just the one that stuck. Being from St. Louis, it’s natural to be a baseball fan and root for the Cardinals. After I saw my first curveball, I knew my days of baseball were numbered. After high school, I attended Benedictine University from 1986-1990 to play soccer as a goalkeeper. My major was Journalism, with a minor in Business.
Did you step right into the coaching field?
Actually I took some time off. I worked for a service company of my father’s for three years, and then was a commercial photographer for two and a half years. I went back to Benedictine to get my teaching certificate to teach history at the high school level, and coach soccer at that level. That’s when I started coaching in the KC area for a soccer club until I got offered a job at Tulane University. I was the number one assistant, and the recruiting coordinator from 2000-2005.
What brought you to Emporia State?
I was there during Hurricane Katrina, which obviously had a big impact of where I am today. I lived just outside New Orleans, and my area was fortunate not to be flooded. However the building in which I worked had anywhere between five to 10 feet of water. Tulane suspended 11 other sports besides soccer. One thing I will never forget though is that many of our students were taken in as Tulane students by Texas A&M University. The work and hospitality that university showed is something I will never forget, and I will be appreciative to them for. In that summer, a personal friend contacted me about a job opening up here, and that May I moved back to Kansas.
What were your thoughts on last weeks’ exhibition game?
I liked about 80-85 percent of what they did. They did a nice job creating opportunities to score, but just didn’t capitalize on those chances. It is very critical to finish those plays when you have chances.
What are the biggest challenges going into this season?
Most people don’t realize that this is one of, if not the, best conference in the MIAA. The challenge is going to be week in and week out, playing tough competition. This year’s team isn’t as deep, so the team will have to really be more focused on what we are trying to get done. It sounds cliché, but we just need to take it one game at a time and get better every day.
Chris Hopkins/The Bulletin
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