Memphis - Having been a staple in the Rhodes College Athletic Department for 30 years, Andy Marcinko will retire and conclude his distinguished career today at the college.
"It's hard to believe it's been 30 years since Mike Clary gave me the opportunity to coach at Rhodes," said Marcinko. "I certainly would not have made it this long without the mentoring of Herb Hilgeman and Sarah Hatgas, especially during those early years – as well as the day-to-day counsel of Robert Shankman and Matt Dean."
As Mike Clary so proudly proclaims, one of his greatest accomplishments as Athletic Director was hiring Andy Marcinko and current Lynx Athletic Director Matt Dean to the staff in 1991. Robert Shankman had joined the staff a year earlier. "The energy Robert, Andy, and Matt brought to Rhodes was program-changing," said Coach Clary. "They invigorated myself, Sarah Hatgas and Herb Hilgeman, along with a number of new staff. We worked hard at giving our student-athletes great experiences, we were highly successful, and we had a blast as a staff."
Marcinko came to Rhodes after an extremely successful stint at the NJCAA level at Richland Junior College in Dallas, Texas. Upon coming to Rhodes, Marcinko helmed both the men's and women's soccer programs for eight seasons before transitioning to the men's side full-time in 1999. He maintained a head coaching position for 26 years until he stepped down for family reasons to be the assistant men's soccer coach and compliance coordinator for two seasons. In his final two years at Rhodes, Marcinko has been the Director of the Bryan Campus Life Center as well as the Director of Athletic Student Employment.
"Lots of wonderful memories with both men's and women's teams," said Marcinko. "I think the 11 International trips we took, are to this day, some of the best memories of so many of our former coaches and players." Marcinko's first pre-season trip abroad was with the men's program to the Czech and Slovak Republics and Austria in 1993. The following year, he took the women to Finland and Estonia. The rest of the trips included stops in Germany, Holland, Denmark, Sweden, and Hungary.
"I'm excited for Andy as he starts a new chapter in his life, but also sad to see my friend and colleague depart after 30 years of serving our student-athletes at such a high level," said Robert Shankman, head track & field and cross country coach. "After inheriting two fledgling programs in 1991, It was amazing to watch how quickly he positively transformed the culture of each program. Andy never got caught up in drama or politics….he just always did things the right way, caring more about those around him than himself. Even after transitioning to an administrative role in recent years, he continued to do an amazing job. Andy will definitely be missed."
During Marcinko's tenure, the Lynx won four Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championships and finished runners-up 12 times. He was named SCAC Coach of the Year four times and guided his teams to four NCAA appearances. Overall, 56 players garnered All-Region accolades while Marcinko was head coach, which included three All-Americans.
"In the early 1990s our women's and men's soccer programs were in dire need of a full-time coach and strong leadership, and Andy did an amazing organizational, recruiting and coaching job of establishing Rhodes as one of the best NCAA Division III soccer programs in the country," said Coach Clary.
"It's hard to believe that Andy and I started the same day 30 years ago in our department," said Matt Dean, Director of Athletics. "He has built an incredible legacy in soccer at Rhodes. Four out of 5 years with teams in the NCAA tournament, he's coached multiple hall of fame soccer teams, and is the winningest coach in Rhodes soccer history. Rhodes soccer will forever be indebted to Andy Marcinko."
As the winningest coach in both programs, his combined record stands at 381-202-48. He compiled a record of 111-33-4 from 1991-1998 with the women. On the men's side, he has totaled a record of 270-169-44 from 1991-Sept. of 2017.
During his tenure, the following individuals and teams have been inducted into the Rhodes Athletics Hall of Fame:
1994 & 1995 women's soccer teams
Hallie (McNeill) Ward '96
Neil Brunetz '97
1993 & 1994 men's soccer teams
"I'm thankful for the relationships I've developed with those faculty, staff and students I have worked with both in the office and on the soccer field," said Marcinko. Post-retirement, Andy is "looking forward to spending some long overdue time with family and friends!".
Coach Marcinko, we wish you the best in what's to come!
