UTEP women’s soccer program adds two assistant coaches

EL PASO, Texas (Via UTEP) – UTEP soccer head coach Kathryn Balogun announced two additions to her staff on Monday. Katherine Ward and Stewart Givens have been named assistant coaches.U

“I am really excited to welcome Katherine Ward to UTEP,” Balogun said. “Kate not only has played at the division one level, but also with the USA Deaf Women’s National Team. She never let her disability hold her back and brings experience working with travel, academics and practice planning. In addition, while working at VCU they made multiple appearances in the Atlantic 10 Conference Championship. Kate will bring high energy, knowledge and work rate into our Miner culture.”

Ward joins the Miners after serving as a graduate assistant at Virginia Commonwealth University. She assisted the coaching staff with film analysis, recruiting administrative support and worked with a team that made two appearances in the Atlantic 10 Conference Championship.

During her playing career, Ward represented the USA Deaf Women’s National Soccer Team at four international tournaments. She was named team captain and helped the team win two DIFA (Deaf International Football Association) World Cups (Turkey 2012, Italy 2016). She was also a part of the USA team that won two gold medals at the Deaflympics (Taiwan 2009, Bulgaria 2013).

The Atlanta, Ga., native appeared in 27 games and tallied 3 goals over her collegiate career. Ward graduated in May 2016 with a bachelor of science in cellular molecular biology with a 3.7 GPA. She earned a master’s in education in sports leadership from Virginia Commonwealth University in December 2018.

“I am really excited to welcome Stewart Givens to UTEP,” Balogun said. “Stew has a great working knowledge for both field players and goalkeepers, so we will use him in both functions. In addition, we will utilize his love of working with both the team and individuals in film in order to provide a quality-learning environment. Stew will also bring connections when recruiting in Region III and abroad. He and his wife, Leslie, are going to be great additions to the Sun City and the Miner Family.”

Givens joins the Miners after serving as assistant coach at Central Michigan University. He helped the aid 22 student-athletes to All-MAC Academic selections and mentored CMU all-time leading scorer Lexi Pelafas (41 goals, 94 points).

Prior to joining the Central Michigan staff, Givens was a graduate assistant with the Oakland men’s program for two seasons. During his time there the Grizzlies won the Summit League regular-season and tournament championships in 2012. He was the girls varsity coach at Troy High School in suburban Detroit for three seasons, and served as the head coach for the Pontiac-based Vardar Soccer Club.

Givens played at Oakland, from which he earned four letters and served as a team captain for two seasons. He was a member of the NCAA, the Horizon League and Oakland’s student-athlete advisory committees, was a two-time All-Summit League selection, and was nominated by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America for Scholar All-America 2018.

He trained post-collegiately in Scotland and played from 2009-13 with the Michigan Buck of the Professional Development League. In 2011, he earned the PDL Defender of the Year Award.

Givens earned his bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Oakland in 2010. He holds coaching certification from the United States Soccer Federation and a diploma in mental and physical player development from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.