POUGHKEEPSIE, New York – The Marist College Athletic Department has announced the hiring of Gene Smith as a new assistant coach for the Marist Women's Soccer program.

“We're very excited to have Gene on board,” said head coach Katherine Lyn. “He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in collegiate coaching and we look forward to working with him this fall season.”

Smith joins the program with a plethora of coaching experiencing across Division II and Division III NCAA levels along with a recruiting experience that has developed classes that have garnered multiple All-American's, All-Region, All-Conference, Players of the Year, Freshman Team selections, and Defensive Players of the Year.

Smith previously served as the head women's soccer coach at Davis and Elkins College in West Virginia for the 2014 and 2015 seasons. Smith was named GMAC Coach of the Year after winning the 2015 Regular Season Championship and earning a NCAA Midwest Regional Ranking.

Smith left Davis and Elkins with a 25-11-3 overall record and coached three student-athletes to All-Conference selections and two to All-Freshman selections. Smith also coached the Freshman and Offensive Player of the Year in 2015 and the Defensive Player of the Year in 2014.

Prior to his time with Davis and Elkins, Smith spent four years as a head coach and an assistant coach at the California University of Pennsylvania and previously served five seasons as the head women's soccer coach at Plymouth State, an NCAA Division III program in Plymouth, N.H.

A native of Connecticut, Smith finished his playing career as a two-year starter at NCAA Division III Norwich (Vt.) after originally playing at Xavier. He has also competed and coached for several premier teams in his home state. Smith also enjoyed success in semi-professional and professional settings with various teams in the United Soccer League (USL) and abroad.