Gary Hamel
Gary Hamel
  • Title:
    Head Coach
  • Phone:
    828-689-1227
  • Email:
    ghamel@mhu.edu
  • Alma Mater:
    Springfield, '90

Bio

Gary Hamel enters his sixth season as the head coach of the Mars Hill men's soccer team. He was named the head coach on May 31, 2012.

During his tenure at MHU he has coached five All-Region players and a Daktronics All-American. He was named the SAC Coach of the Year following the 2012 campaign that saw the Lions claim the SAC regular season title and an NCAA tournament appearance.

Spanning five seasons at Mars Hill, Coach Hamel has a 40-40-6 overall record and a 28-22-3 record in South Atlantic Conference matches. Coach Hamel has led the Lions to a spot in the SAC Tournament in four of the last five seasons.

Hamel spent the last four seasons as an assistant coach with the Oregon State men's soccer program.

Hamel worked primarily with the field players and worked closely with the greatest player in OSU school history, Danny Mwanga, who earned several All-America honors and was chosen the Pac-10 Player of the Year in 2009 before being selected No. 1 overall in the MLS SuperDraft by the Philadelphia Union.

Oregon State finished second in the Pac-10 Conference in 2009, its highest finish in seven years.

Prior to joining Oregon State in 2008, Hamel served as an assistant coach at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colo., where he helped lead the team to a 15-4-1 record in 2007 and a berth in the NCAA Division II Regional Semifinals. While at Fort Lewis College, two players were named to the All-Region team and two players earned All-Tournament honors.

He was a long-time coach in the Bend United Soccer Club and Central Oregon Soccer Association and also coached at Bend High School, Summit High School and Sunriver Preparatory School.

Hamel graduated from Springfield (Mass.) College in 1990 with a Bachelor's degree in Physical Education.

Hamel and his wife, Kimberly, have two children, Parker and Bridget.