ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – University of New Mexico women’s soccer coach Heather Dyche has announced the addition of three members to her staff.
Missy Strasburg and Karley Nelson have signed on as assistant coaches for the 2015-16 season. Brad Keller is the team’s new director of operations.
Strasburg begins her first season as assistant coach at the University of New Mexico. She comes to the Lobos after a two-year stay as an assistant St. Mary’s (Calif.) College.
She also spent two seasons as an assistant at UTSA (2011-12), one season at Georgia Southern, a year as a volunteer assistant at Washington in 2010 and a year as assistant coach at North Carolina-Greensboro, which won the Southern Conference Championship during her season there.
She spent six years as the program soccer director at the Spokane Shadow (Wash.) Youth Soccer Club after playing collegiately four years for the Gonzaga Bulldogs. She was a four-year starting defender for the Bulldogs and helped Gonzaga set a then-school record for fewest goals allowed in a season.
Nelson was an assistant at Utah Valley University in 2014, where she helped direct the team’s training sessions .
Prior to her time in Utah, Nelson was an assistant coach at Iowa Western Community College from 2011-13, where she designed and implemented the team’s training regimen. Nelson also assisted with recruiting, academics, team travel and game management for the team. Iowa Western went 33-6-1 during her two full seasons, with a No. 3 national ranking in 2012 and a No. 5 national ranking in 2011.
Nelson, a native of Orem, Utah, served as a coach at the UK International Soccer Camps in Palo Alto, Calif., in 2010 and was an assistant soccer coach at Cortez High School in Phoenix from 2008-09.
Keller comes to UNM with a rich soccer background, having served as girls head coach at Desert Mountain High School in Scottsdale, Ariz., from 2013-15 and head coach of the Serrano Soccer Club ’04 boys from 2012-15.
The Scottsdale, Ariz., native also played one year professionally for his hometown Phoenix FC Wolves of the United Soccer League in 2013 and competed for the Centro de Alto Rendimiento Futbol Club in Cancύn, Mexico.
Keller played college soccer at the University of Washington from 2007-10. He appeared in 64 career games, starting in 59 in the defensive backfield. He was an honorable mention All-Pac-10 selection and an honorable mention Academic All-Pac-10 selection as a junior in 2009, and a second-team Academic All-Pac-10 selection as a senior in 2010. He also earned honorable mention All-Pac-10 honors in 2008 as a sophomore.