Chris Parsons enters his 24th year at the United States Coast Guard Academy and his 23rd season as the Head Men's Soccer Coach.
Parsons has a 22-year record at CGA of 195-155-56 and has led the Bears to postseason play in 16 of his 22 seasons (2002-09, 2012-14, 2016, 2017, 2021, 2023, 2024), including the program's first NCAA tournament berth in 33 years in 2014 and just the third NCAA appearance all-time for the men's soccer team. Parsons also led the Bears to the ECAC Division III New England Championship in 2008 and again in 2012.
2024 was an excellent season for the Bears as the team finished 12-6-2, qualifying for the NEWMAC Tournament. Midway through the season, the Bears were ranked as high as 12th nationally in the USC Coaches Poll. In the NEWMAC Tournament, CGA defeated Emerson, 2-1, in overtime at home in the quarterfinal; in the semi’s, CGA lost a heartbreaking 2-1 decision to Salve Regina in Newport, R.I., conceding a late controversial penalty kick with less than eight minutes left in regulation. Senior Jude Sargent and junior Aki Freeman were named to the All-NEWMAC First Team, while senior Micah Messner was named to the All-NEWMAC Second Team; Sargent was also named the NEWMAC Defensive Player of the Year. Sargent and Freeman were named to the USC All-Region II First Team, and the 12 wins is the sixth highest win total in program history.
Parsons was named the NEWMAC Coach of the Year in 2014 after the team went 13-3-3 overall and 4-1-2 in conference play. The 13 regular season victories is the most in program history. The team was ranked as high as 14th nationally and 2nd in New England during this historic season. Parsons was also named NEWMAC Coach of the Year in 2007 along with 2012. In this decade, the Bear’s have been ranked nationally in the 2021 and 2022 seasons. Both years saw the squad ranked as high as first regionally.
During his 29 year head coaching career, Parsons has amassed 279 victories, including 235 NCAA Division III wins. Parsons was the head coach at Vassar College for five years (1997-2001) where he compiled a 40-37-5 record including back-to-back ECAC Tournament berths in 1997 and 1998 and a berth to the NCAA Tournament in 1999.
Prior to Vassar, Parsons was the head coach at Champlain College, a junior college in Vermont from 1993-96. His team won the 1996 NJCAA Region III Championship. In 1995, he was named the NJCAA Region III Coach of the Year after his team finished as the Region III runners-up. He had a four-year record of 44-20-4 at Champlain College.
Chris was an NSCAA First Team All-American at Middlebury College, where he earned a degree in Economics. He earned a Master’s Degree in Sports Management at UMass in 1990 and holds NSCAA Advanced National and Professional Diplomas. Parsons was inducted into the Connecticut Soccer Hall of Fame in January of 2017 and the Southeast Connecticut Soccer Hall of Fame in October of 2022.
In addition to coaching the men’s soccer team, Parsons also serves as the Associate Athletics Director for Facilities & Admissions, serving as the Goast Guard Academy Athletics Department's primary representative in both areas, and is also an instructor in the Health and Physical Education Division.
