Michael Marich, who has served as an assistant coach with the Blue Streaks for the past four seasons, has been elevated to the position of head coach effective April 2, 2012.

Marich replaces Tracy Blasius, who resigned from the position in January after 15 years at the post.

"I am happy that Mike has agreed to continue his work with our women's soccer program as the head coach," said Laurie Massa. "I feel Mike has the desire and ability to lead our program to even greater success through his knowledge of the game, recruiting and the development of student-athletes, both as players and people."

Marich began coaching at John Carroll in 2008, and has helped several Blue Streak defenders and keepers earn all-conference accolades. JCU has reached the OAC Tournament all four years in which he has been on staff.

A 2003 graduate of the University of Akron, where he earned a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration and Marketing, Marich was a four-year varsity athlete and a two-year team captain on the men's soccer team.

In 2003, he helped show the Zips to their first ever NCAA Tournament seeding (15th), where they advanced to the Sweet 16 round. That same year, the Akron defense was ranked fourth in the nation in both shutout percentage (59 percent) and goal against average (0.58).

During his playing career, Marich helped Akron win three Mid-American Conference (MAC) regular season titles, along with winning the MAC tournament in 2002 and making two consecutive NCAA appearances (2002-2003).

Individually, as a center back, Marich garnered a number of awards. On the field, he was named as Akron's co-MVP in 2003 and the Zips' Outstanding Defensive Player in 2002. Within the league, Marich was named to the first team All-MAC regular season and tournament teams in 2002 and 2003. He was also named a first-team All Ohio player.

For his efforts in the classroom, Marich was on the MAC Honor Roll in 2002, while being named first team Academic All-Ohio and as an Academic All-MAC performer in 2003.

"I want to thank Laurie Massa and all the administration for the opportunity to lead this great program," said Marich. "It is an exciting time for me, after being a part of the program for the last four years. I look forward to continuing the success we've had and helping this program achieve new heights. Again, I want to thank everyone at John Carroll University for this opportunity, also my family and everyone that has influenced me in my soccer and coaching career to be able to make this happen."

When not coaching at JCU, Marich coaches at the Internationals Soccer Club.

A native of Northeast Ohio, Marich lives in Willoughby with his wife Brooke and two children, Gavin and Lilliana.