Nicole Nelson nnelson@ou.edu Head Coach Fourth Season     OU Soccer Coaching Staff

Head coach Nicole Nelson enters her fourth year at the helm of the OU soccer program in 2011 after taking the Sooners to the NCAA Tournament a season ago.

For her efforts, Nelson was named the Co-Big 12 Coach of the Year while Whitney Palmer (second team) and Caitlin Mooney (newcomer) were named all-conference.

In the offseason, Palmer and Lauren Alkek became the first Sooners drafted by professional soccer. The duo was part of the top 24 players in the country selected in the 2011 WPS Draft. OU was tied for the nation lead with the most players drafted.

The Sooners enter the 2011 campaign with high expectations after posting double-digit wins (12-8-3) for the first time since 2005 and appeared in the program's second NCAA Tournament. In addition, OU advanced to the championship game of the Big 12 Tournament for the first time in school history. Palmer and Alkek were recognized on the All-Big 12 Tournament team.

In 2010, OU tied a program record for goals scored in a season with 37 and came up one win shy of tying the record for wins. Palmer led OU in scoring for the fourth straight season, the first Sooner to accomplish the feat, and was named to the NSCAA All-Region team for the second consecutive year. The Sooners also captured five academic awards, including three ESPN the Magazine's All-District VI honorees in Michelle Alexander, Lauren Alkek and Dria Hampton.

In 2009, Nelson and the Sooners doubled the win total from the previous season. Palmer tallied 15 goals in 2009 and ranked in the top 20 nationally in goals and points, also earned all-region honors as the Sooners finished 7-10-2 and featured the program's first win over perennial power, Texas A &M.

Seven Sooners were named to the 2009 Academic All-Big 12 teams and Michelle Alexander and Ashley Farrand were selected to All-District Academic team.

In 2008, Palmer was named to the All-Big 12 second team while six Sooners were named to the conference's academic first team. In addition, Claire West was named to All-District Academic team.

While Nelson's squads have racked up awards, the last four-plus years have also been highlighted by strong recruiting classes, including four freshmen in 2011 and transfers Alison Farrell (Oklahoma State) and Tori Rocke (Northern Arizona).

Some of the nation's top prep players have traveled to Norman since Nelson's arrival as the 2010 roster includes seven players with national team experience in the U.S.and England.

In July, 2010, Nelson worked with as a U.S. Soccer Region III age group coach. She has been a member of the Olympic Development Program for Region III for the last nine years and is currently the head coach of the '97 team.

Nelson was introduced as the head soccer coach at the University of Oklahoma on Dec. 21, 2007, following a thorough national search. After an impressive three-year run as the head coach at Stephen F. Austin and successful stints as an assistant coach at Texas and Baylor, Nelson became the third head coach in the history of the program.

Throughout the 10 years of her collegiate coaching career, Nelson's teams have built an 103-80-26 record, including a 33-19-9 mark while at the helm of the Stephen F. Austin program from 2002-2004.

Nelson, a native of Yukon, Okla., who attended Mustang High School and graduated from Oklahoma City University in 1997, expressed her joy in returning home upon her hire.

"I am excited to return home to the state of Oklahoma to coach," Nelson said. "Having grown up playing and coaching in this state, it is with tremendous pride that I accept this position.

"I am grateful for the opportunities that I had at Texas, Baylor and Stephen F. Austin as they prepared me for the work that lies ahead here at Oklahoma. "

During her two years as an assistant at Texas, Nelson worked with all aspects of running the program and helped coach a Longhorn team that won back-to-back postseason Big 12 Championships in 2006 and 2007.

In addition, Texas made consecutive appearances in the NCAA Sweet 16 during Nelson's tenure, which also featured nine All-Big 12 honorees and three All-America honors.

The postseason run in 2006 was the Longhorns' first conference tournament title and, after an appearance in the NCAA Sweet 16, Texas achieved the program's highest final ranking at No. 8.

In addition, the 18 wins in 2006 was a program best and Texas also produced two All-Americans in a single season for the second time in program history.

In 2007, Texas finished with a 16-4-5 overall mark and a second-place finish in the Big 12 standings with a 6-2-2 record. Nelson again helped lead the Longhorns into elite status as they achieved a No. 1 ranking during the season, won the Big 12 Tournament Championship and appeared in the NCAA Sweet 16.

Nelson served as the recruiting coordinator at Texas, a position she also held as an assistant coach while at Baylor University in 2005.

Prior to her stint at Baylor, Nelson directed the Stephen F. Austin program to two Southland Conference Championships. In her second year at the helm, Nelson's Ladyjacks won the conference tournament and made the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2003.

In 2004, SFA won the regular season Southland Championship and Nelson was named the conference coach of the year for the second consecutive season.

Nelson tutored 25 student-athletes who were named All-SLC over three seasons and left the Ladyjacks as the winningest coach in program history.

As a player, Nelson started every game and was the team captain in 1995, 1996 and 1997 at Oklahoma City University under Brian Harvey. Nelson was a three-time All-Sooner Athletic Conference member and Academic All-American.

Before she started her career in coaching, Nelson played professional soccer for the Austin Lonestars (W-League).

Following that stint, she worked with numerous clubs and camps before taking her first position in the collegiate ranks as a volunteer assistant at her alma mater in 2000-01.

Nelson earned a bachelor's degree in psychology and as a bachelor of arts degree in Spanish in 1997 at Oklahoma City University. She received her master's degree in kinesiology from Stephen F. Austin in May 2005.