Ashland University has a new women’s soccer coach, and his name is Danny Krispinsky.

If that name does not sound familiar to you it should. Krispinsky played for the Eagles on the men’s side and graduated from AU in 2006.

After that, he spent two seasons (2009 and 2010) as an assistant coach for the men under Jon Freeman before moving on to coach the Ashland High School boys’ team in 2012.

His sister, Kelly, is a junior soccer player here as well. Now he will get the chance to coach her.

“It means a lot to me, the confidence and trust that they’ve placed in me,” Danny Krispinsky said. “I’m gonna do everything I can to reward them of that trust. I’m so excited to get going and working with this group.”

The hiring comes after the resignation of former head women’s coach Glenn Francis, who left to pursue other opportunities.

Krispinsky was notified of the opening last Thursday and accepted Saturday evening.

For a local kid who grew up in the Ashland soccer community, it was the logical next step up on the ladder.

“I’ve been following Ashland soccer as long as I can remember,” he said. “The Ashland soccer DNA is in me and I love it, I enjoy it, and I’m excited to do great things here.”

Krispinsky is excited to implement his system and hopes he can take the program to the heights it once reached and those he reached as a player and assistant coach.

He was the second-leading scorer on the first Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship team in Ashland men’s soccer history.

He was also a part of the 2010 team that won both the regular season and conference tournament crowns.

Last season, he led Ashland High School to a 15-3-2 record and an undefeated Ohio Cardinal Conference championship (10-0-0).

“That just allowed me to confirm that what we have set is gonna work,” he said.

Krispinsky likes his teams to win games with purposeful possession and play fast, attacking soccer. He believes the pieces are in place for that to happen as soon as next season.

“I think people are gonna like what they see here,” he said.

Krispinsky has plenty of experience coaching both boys and girls soccer and says there will be little transition from the past few years of coaching on the boys side, except that he feels women listen to their coaches better.

Many of the players from the 2011 team that made a run to the GLIAC championship before falling to Grand Valley State are still there, and he will rely on their leadership as well as a strong freshman class with a year of experience under its belt.

As for recruiting, Krispinsky will take what he gets for 2013 and focus on gathering a strong group for the 2014 season.

He will have to learn on the fly but finds comfort in knowing that he will be working next door to Freeman.

“He has a good thing going on there with the men’s program that I took a lot from and will use pieces and parts to implement here in our women’s program,” Krispinsky said.

There may be a familiar face in charge of the women’s soccer team when it begins play in August, but make no mistake: the team will have a fresh new look and a clean slate.