March 26, 2007

DAYTON, Ohio - University of Dayton men's soccer head coach Dennis Currier announced on Monday that Chase Brooks is joining the staff as an assistant coach for the Flyers.

Brooks, 25, comes to Dayton from the Northern Illinois coaching staff where he helped guide the program to a No. 19 National Ranking in 2006.

"We are extremely excited to have Chase join our staff," said Currier. "He has tremendous character and brings excellent experience as a Division I assistant from a highly reputable program. He will balance our staff out very well allowing us to achieve our program goals."

Prior to NIU, Chase worked for his alma mater, Eckerd College, since May 2003. After a four-year letter winning career, he remained at EC as an assistant coach while he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in management in May 2003. By December 2003, he was pressed into duty as the interim head coach until May 2004.

A native of Ft. Myers, Florida, his playing career for the Tritons began in 1999 when he also earned an Eckerd Special Talent Scholarship for Soccer. Brooks served as captain for Eckard during his last two seasons with his senior year including First-Team All-Sunshine Conference accolades. After his senior year, he was chosen as the recipient of the James R. Harley Award, which is presented to the student-athlete who best represents Eckerd.

During his college career, the three-time Sunshine State Conference Honor Roll athlete also received academic scholarships from Eckerd and the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship program.

A former Florida Youth Soccer Association referee, Brooks also worked Eckerd summer soccer camps and coached the Southside Youth Soccer program in St. Petersburg. His resume also includes serving as an Operations Assistant for the USBL Florida SeaDragons Basketball Team based in Ft. Myers.

As part of the NIU coaching staff the last two years, Brooks help guide the Huskies to a No. 19 national ranking in 2006, the Mid-American Conference tournament championship, the Mid-American regular season championship, and a automatic bid to the NCAA National Tournament.

The team finished 15-6-1, which were the most wins in the programs history. Brooks assisted in training the defenders and goalkeepers that ranked No. 1 nationally in team shutouts and goals against average.

Brooks, who is currently completing work on a Master's degree in sports management from NIU, earned an Advance National License from the NSCAA in 2005 after earning an NSCAA National License Distinguished Pass in 2004. He recently earned his USSF "B" License.

Brooks is married to his wife, Sarah.