FORT KENT, Maine — Sunday’s victory over the University of Maine at Machias wasn’t just another win for the UMaine-Fort Kent men’s soccer team.
With his club’s 3-1 victory over the visiting Clippers, UMFK head coach Bill Ashby became the 42nd college soccer coach to achieve 400 career victories.
Ashby is also the 19th active head coach to accomplish the feat. His overall collegiate record, which dates back to 1984, stands at 400-173-24.
“It’s been a passion ever since I was a young boy and I was fortunate enough to be able to follow my passion,” said Ashby.
Ashby’s college coaching career began at UMaine-Machias, where he stayed until 1987 before moving on to Husson University in Bangor. He guided that program until 1992.
Ashby moved on to Maine Maritime Academy in Castine, where he led the Mariners to 64 victories in four seasons before stops at the University of Mary in North Dakota and Brescia University in Kentucky.
His teams won 58 games at Mary University and 50 games at Brescia University and he twice earned both NAIA Regional Coach of the Year honors and NAIA Sectional Coach of the Year laurels.
Ashby then arrived in the St. John Valley in 2006, where he has remained as the men’s soccer coach and athletic administrator at UMFK.
The Bengals have been a powerhouse under Ashby’s tutelage, compiling an astounding record of 188-15-6, good for a percentage of .914.
In addition to college coaching, the Lubec High School graduate also coached at Lawrence High School in Fairfield in 1982 and at Narraguagus in Harrington in 1988.
A willingness to learn is one thing that has kept Ashby in the profession as long as he has coached.
“Just the culmination of putting time in and learning as much as you can,” he said. “All that stuff adds up. The more you work in coaching, the more you learn from other coaches. “
UMFK has never lost more than three games in a season under Ashby’s watch, winning United States Collegiate Athletic Association national championships in 2011 and 2015. He has been chosen as the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Coach of the Year six times, most recently last fall.
Ashby’s 2008 UMFK team advanced to the NAIA Elite Eight, the furthest any UMFK team has advanced in any sport.
He has certainly found a home in the St. John Valley.
“It’s a good school, they let me manage things so we can be successful in our other sports, too,” Ashby said. “They let me establish that leadership role here and we’ve gotten some nice stuff done.”
The 2016 edition of Ashby’s Bengals sits at 10-0 just past the halfway point of their regular-season slate.
