After a five-month search for the next leader of the girls’ soccer program, the Apollo athletic department announced 35-year veteran Dave Woeste as the new coach during a ceremony Friday.
Woeste (pronounced Woosty) played collegiately at Northern Kentucky and professionally in Louisville before embarking on a coaching career that has spanned more than three decades already. He’s spent time at various levels, including recreation, select and high school.
Apollo athletic director Dan Crume said the school went through a handful of candidates but didn’t feel like the fit was quite right until Woeste entered the mix.
“When we looked at his resume, that’s when we said ‘We’ve got something now. We’re ready to move forward,’” Crume said.
It was a little bit of luck that Woeste, an Ohio native, even came across the opening. He met his now-fiancé Cathy Riney and came to Owensboro on a visit. He liked the area and began searching for a teaching and coaching job, and everything fell into place from there.
Woeste most recently held a position at the Centerville United Soccer Association, one of the oldest soccer clubs in the United States. He was the National Premier League director, and he was instrumental in doubling the number of teams over the last two years.
His list of accolades and high-level positions is long, but Woeste has also put in a good amount of work into developing feeder systems at the youth level. Crume said he and principal Rick Lasley knew they found the next coach based on the various degrees of experience.
“When we were looking at candidates, he really stood out because of his credentials,” Crume said. “He has a background and head coaching experience at the high school level, plus he has youth experience and involvement in the club scene. We felt that was all vital to this position.”
Woeste is ready to add Apollo to his list of successful endeavors, and he got started by meeting the team earlier Friday.
His first goal will be to talk more with the rising seniors, as well as get to know the assistant coaches better.
“I want to get (the girls) to buy into this being something that they are invested in,” he said. “I met a couple of the coaches here, so I’ll keep talking to them and getting a feel for who they are and what they’re all about.”
Woeste said he’s already excited to get started based on some of the interactions he’s had thus far. During his interviews with Crume and Lasley, Woeste said he was able to get a feel for the friendly, supportive atmosphere at the school.
“Everybody works together here,” he said. “It’s like a big family. I really like that. I like that we’re all supporting each other’s sports. That’s important.”
Woeste said it will take some time to get a feel for the goals and expectations he’ll be able to set for the team, but he does know the style of play he’ll try to institute. He said he draws from a German style of play were defense is key.
“I pretty much have the philosophy that a good defense wins games,” he said. “Good goalkeeping, good defense and being able to quickly get into the counter — most good national German teams are like that.”
Crume admitted that it could take time to see some results as the program continues to build and improve, but he’s confident Woeste is the man for the job. Said Crume of the hire:
“I feel that we’ve hit the nail on the head with the position.”
