John Benitez
	Title	Women's Soccer Coach
	E-Mail	jbenitez@post.edu
	Phone	(203) 596-4658
	Fax	(203) 596-4695

John Benitez enters his first season at the helm of the Post Univesity women's soccer program, after spending the past 10 seasons as an assistant women's soccer coach at Western Connecticut State University.

"The search for our new coach was a very extensive process," Fallacaro said. "The search committee narrowed it down to several qualified applicants and John was ultimately the right fit for us. His coaching and playing background, coupled with his love for the game made John the right choice for our women's soccer program."

Benitez was part of a very successful coaching staff at Western Connecticut State, led by Head Coach Joe Mingachos. During his time on the Danbury campus, the program made nine post-season appearances and six trips to the NCAA Division III Tournament.

"It's a great opportunity to land this job," Benitez said. "There is great potential here and with the commitment from the University, we are looking to take this program to the next level. Our initial goal is for the program to make the CACC Championships, like last season, and then in the next year or two after play for a bid in the NCAA's."

In 2006, WCSU finished with a 20-2-1 overall record and a perfect 7-0 mark in the Little East Conference. The Colonials advanced to the NCAA tournament for the fifth time in the last seven seasons. They would also finish the season ranked number-two in the National Soccer Coaches of America Top-25 Poll. It was the second 20-win season for the Colonials, who finished the 2001 season 20-3 overall, while finishing as the NCAA Division III New England Region runner-up.

He is also active in club soccer in the State of Connecticut, as he is the head coach of the Connecticut Football Club U15 Elite team, which is currently ranked 15^th in the Nation. In addition, the U15 squad is also the number-two ranked team in Region 1. He is also the director of operations for the CFC Gunners Division, and is responsible for all areas of the program, including hiring coaches, scheduling, marketing, and player registration.

"John has seen success at both the collegiate and club level," Fallacaro added. "Most important however, is his familiarity with the local soccer landscape and ability to recruit top-level student-athletes. I have no doubt that he will be able to continue the tradition of landing strong recruiting classes at Post University."

He was a two-time captain of the Western Connecticut State men's soccer team, and finished his career as the all-time leading scorer in 1995. He tallied 41 goals and assisted on 35 more, for 117 career points. He was also twice named first-team All-New England, and helped the Colonials to three NCAA Tournament appearances, while reaching the Elite 8 in 1992.

Benitez takes the reigns of the program from Matt Micros who resigned earlier this spring to become an assistant women's soccer coach at Quinnipiac University.

Assistant Coaches:

Shannon Helm enters her second season as an assistant coach for the Post University women's soccer program, after finishing her playing career at Fairfield University. She was a three-time Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) All-Academic selection, while playing in 74 games for the Stags.

As a senior, she was second on the team in scoringwith 13 points, while helping Fairfield earn its fourth trip to the NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championships. She finished her career ninth in scoring with 41 points, while registering 14 goals, which is shy of the top-10 on the school's all-time list.

In the 2002 season, she finished eighth in the MAAC in scoring with 15 points (five goals, five assists), and recorded a two-goal, two-assist outing against St. Peter's.

She resides in Cheshire, Conn.