Nate Kopunek recently wrapped up his first season on the men's soccer coaching staff at Bowling Green State University. Kopunek, who came to BGSU from Georgia Southern University, was hired to coach Varsity Men's Soccer in May of 2019.
The 2019 season saw the Falcons win 13 contests, the highest total in five years and only the second double-digit victory total since 1998. The Brown and Orange kept 11 clean sheets, recording a double-figure shutout total for the first time since that '98 campaign.
BG advanced to the MAC Tournament's championship match for the first time in five years. Along the way, the Falcons downed Northern Illinois at home in the quarterfinal round, then defeated Akron on the Zips' home field in the semifinals. The latter match marked BGSU's first victory over the Zips since 2002, and was the program's first road win since 1997.
The 2019 Falcons more than doubled the win total from the previous season. BG won four total matches vs. MAC foes in a season for the first time since 2003.
BGSU landed a school-record six players on the All-MAC Team in 2019, as Anthony Mwembia and Achille Robin made the first team, while Chris Brennan, Zach Buescher, Charlie Maciejewski and Chris Sullivan all were named to the second team. Mwembia and Robin went on to be named to the United Soccer Coaches All-Region Team as well.
In his lone season with Georgia Southern, Kopunek helped the Eagles advance to the championship match of the Sun Belt Conference Tournament. GSU went 7-7-3 overall and 2-1-1 in conference play, tying for second in the league standings.
The Eagles ended the season ranked 75th in the RPI after being ranked as high as 69th, the best ranking in program history, during the year. Senior Javier Carbonell was named the Sun Belt's Offensive Player of the Year while sharing overall league Player-of-the-Year honors.
Kopunek joined the Eagles from Yale University where he served as the team’s Director of Operations and Player Personnel. He helped the Bulldogs to a third-place finish in the Ivy League in 2017, the program’s best finish since the 2005 season. Yale saw four players named to the All-Ivy League Team, and the men’s soccer Bulldogs also earned an NCAA APR Public Recognition award.
Prior to Yale, Kopunek spent four seasons at George Mason University, helping the Patriots to a No. 12 national ranking and a final RPI of 33 in 2014. George Mason featured one All-American and three All-Region performers in his time there, and the Patriots also had players signed by both the New England Revolution and the Philadelphia Union of MLS.
Kopunek also has extensive club experience, coaching on the AC Connecticut Juniors staff as well as Maryland United FC, the Baltimore Bays Chelsea USSF Development Academy and the Fewster FC club. He also assisted with DC United game-day operations beginning in 2007. Now, Kopunek is coaching Men's Club Soccer at BGSU.
A native of Annapolis, Md., Kopunek is a 2014 graduate of Towson University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in legal studies. He also holds a US Soccer C License, a United Soccer Coaches Goalkeeping Level 1 Diploma and a United Soccer Coaches Special Topics Diploma: The Art of the Assistant.
