FC Monmouth Announces Semi-Professional Women's Team

May 1 2024

FC Monmouth are proud to announce its official launch of its semi-professional women’s team. The team will play in an unofficial inaugural season in 2024. The club is thrilled to share that it plans on submitting an application to join the WPSL in 2025.

“This is something that has been in the works for over a year now. It is incredible to finally have this program set in stone. I think we have the right system in place at this time to be joining a semi-professional league at the time that we are. We want to build a landscape to where we can offer an opportunity for women to grow, compete, and navigate a professional environment while representing Monmouth County. This is a monumental moment for the club that only builds on our goals of connecting, inspiring, and entertaining our community.” Says general manager James Davis.

This summer, FC Monmouth will field a roster of 30+ women from around the Jersey Shore. Boasting impressive experiences, accolades, and accomplishments. The FC Monmouth Women’s team will be led by head coach Lou SantaCruz and assisted by Bryan Finley. Both coaches are heavily involved with Players Development Academy (PDA) Shore and are eager to get going with FC Monmouth.

“I’m extremely excited for the opportunity to work with FC Monmouth and within our Jersey Shore community. It was such a pleasure to engage in conversations with FC Monmouth and realize that our goals of providing our local, talented female soccer players an opportunity to continue playing at a competitive, semi-professional level are very much aligned. FC Monmouth has been extremely supportive in efforts to get a competitive women’s soccer program off the ground in our community.” Said SantaCruz.

SantaCruz, a Jersey Shore native, played division 1 soccer at St. Peters University and is the current director of Coaches at PDA. He has coached PDA’s U17 and U18 girls for the past 10 years, most recently coaching their U23’s as well.

Assistant Coach Bryan Finley has coached at PDA since 2015, working as the program director since ‘19. Finley was also the athletic director for the now closed Kings College. Finley recently began coaching FC Monmouth youth teams and has also had a major role in sending youth female players to play soccer competitively in college. In the past 4 years Finley and SantaCruz have been able to send over 120 women’s players to collegiate soccer programs.

“I had the pleasure of working with FC Monmouth and their youth teams last Fall and was impressed with the professionalism of the directors and staff. Everyone had an extremely positive attitude and were always willing to help each other. It was also very clear that they always put the development and well-being of the players first. I'm excited to continue to be involved with FC Monmouth now on the adult side this summer to provide a competitive, positive environment for female collegiate players.” Finley Stated.

FC Monmouth’s women’s team will play its inaugural competitive match on June 2nd at 6PM at Count Basie Park in Red Bank against Real Central. The remaining schedule for this summer is currently TBD.

To keep up with all information on our women’s team, make sure to follow @WeAreMonmouth

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