Lions' Wilkins awarded 2005 coach of the year

Penn State women's soccer coach Paula Wilkins was named the Division I National Coach of the Year Friday night by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) at the organization's convention held in Philadelphia. The award, the first for Wilkins, comes on the heels of a historic 23-0-2 campaign by her squad and a final ranking of No. 2. The Harrisburg-area native has already taken the squad to two College Cup semifinals and captured the Big Ten Championship in each year of her young career.

"It is extremely humbling to be named National Coach of the Year by your peers. A great deal of this honor belongs to my coaching staff and my team. It was because of them that we accomplished what we did this year," Wilkins said. "There were many other top coaches up for this award as well, all equally deserving and I feel both lucky and thankful to have been chosen. I'm proud of my team, I'm proud of our season and I'm proud of this program. I look forward to continuing the success we've had at Penn State."

Four-time Big Ten Coach of the Year, Wilkins earned her first NSCAA regional honor this year when she was named NSCAA Mid-Atlantic Coach of the Year in December.

In just her fifth season as a head coach, Wilkins has achieved a lot . A 1994 Massachusetts grad, Wilkins began her coaching career as an assistant to Pat Farmer when the Penn State program began that fall. In 2001, she assumed the head coaching position upon Farmer's departure for the WUSA. Under Wilkins, Penn State has compiled a 101-14-8 (.854) career record.