Kodiaks welcome Carey back to the bench

The Lethbridge College Kodiaks soccer teams are bidding farewell to one familiar face on the bench, but bringing in another familiar face.

The Kodiaks announced on Monday that Mike Racz, who has been head coach of both the men’s and women’s teams, is stepping away from the Kodiaks to focus on career commitments.

Taking over the coaching reins for both the men’s and women’s teams is Sean Carey, who coached the women’s team for two seasons in 2009-10 and 2010-11.

Racz had been a fixture at the college for eight years, first as an assistant coach with both men’s and women’s soccer teams, then as the head coach of the women’s team for five seasons from 2012-16.

For the past two years, he added the men’s head coaching duties to his resume.

Racz was named Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference South Division women’s Coach of the Year in 201314 and led the men’s team to an ACAC silver medal in 2015-16.

Carey has coached at all levels in southern Alberta and made a lasting impression during his first tenure with the Kodiaks, having won the ACAC South Division women’s Coach of the Year award in 2010-11.

In 2014 and 2015, he coached the men’s and women’s teams for the Alberta Major Soccer League’s Lethbridge FC clubs, winning the men’s regular season title in 2014.

Most recently, he has spent each of the past two seasons as an assistant coach with the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns men’s team.

The Kodiaks will host a pair of identification camps in April for prospective players, with the men’s session April 1 and the women’s camp April 2.