December 31, 1998

Petrucelli Bio

AUSTIN, Texas – Chris Petrucelli, head women’s soccer coach at the University of Notre Dame and two-time National Coach of the Year who led Notre Dame to the 1995 NCAA national championship, has been named the new women’s soccer head coach at the University of Texas as announced Thursday by Texas Women’s Athletics Director Jody Conradt. Petrucelli, 36, is a native of Orange, N.J., and has been Notre Dame’s head coach the last nine years. Hisappointment becomes effective immediately. Petrucelli replaces former UT head coach Dang Pibulvech, whose contract was not renewed at the end of the 1998 season in which Texas went 6-9-3.

Mike Wadsworth
Athletic Director
University of Notre Dame

“Chris Petrucelli will be leaving Notre Dame to become the head women’s soccer coach at Texas. We are grateful to him for the contributions he has made during his nine years at Notre Dame. He took a fledgling program and built it into a national power. This is a great opportunity for Chris and his family, and we wish them well. He leaves our program in a strong position, and we now go about the business of identifying a replacement.”

Chris Petrucelli
Head Women’s Soccer Coach
University of Texas

“Notre Dame has been a great place for me and my family. It has enabled me to grow as a coach and accomplish things many people felt weren’t possible. I’m sad to be leaving such a great place like Notre Dame. I enjoyed working with everyone at Notre Dame, especially the people within the athletic department. Texas presents me with a great opportunity to build another program. I can only hope we have close to the amount of success that Notre Dame has had.”