Contact: Emily Adlfinger, Director of Athletic Communications, 563-588-7970

August 3, 2020 – Loras College men's soccer head coach Steven McCarthy and Director of Athletics Denise Udelhofen '90 are pleased to announce the hiring of Chris Higgins as the assistant coach for the men's soccer program.

"Throughout the interview process, Chris demonstrated a high level of professionalism and an enthusiasm for being a role model to develop young adults on and off the field, " said McCarthy, who is gearing up for his first season as the men's head coach. "Chris will help in all facets of the program with a focus on recruiting and goalkeeper training. His wealth of knowledge will immediately benefit the program and we are delighted to have him join our team."

Higgins joins the Duhawks after three years as the head coach of the Xavier High School girls' soccer program in which his team won the Iowa State Soccer Championship in 2019 and he was named the Mississippi Valley Conference Coach of the Year and Private School Coach of the Year. Before leading Xavier, Higgins was a graduate assistant for the women's soccer team at Mount Mercy University from 2016-2018, including a year as the acting head coach in 2017. While in Cedar Rapids, he also coached with the Cedar Rapids Soccer Association, working with the high school boys team.

He is also the girls' head coach for the Olympic Development Program in Iowa where he works with premier soccer players and develops a pool of players to compete at the regional and national level.

As a student-athlete at Ashford University, Higgins was an NAIA Academic All-American and the Scholar Athlete of the Year in 2013. He also was an AII First Team All-Conference selection in 2014 in addition to earning AII Goalkeeper of the Year honors. He earned his bachelor's degree in physical education with endorsements in coaching and health in 2015 before earning his master's degree in strategic leadership from Mount Mercy in 2018.

"I am delighted to be joining the Loras community and the opportunity to be a part of a program with such a successful pedigree. I am excited to work with Coach McCarthy and the team this season."

A native of Glasgow, Scotland, Higgins will relocate to Dubuque from Coralville, Iowa with his wife, Aminah, prior to the start of the 2020 season.