ELON, N.C. – The Elon University men’s soccer team and head coach Marc Reeves announced updates to the Phoenix’s coaching staff on Wednesday, May 16, with Maciej Sliwinski being elevated to the role of associate head coach and the addition of Nick Sakiewicz to the staff as an assistant coach.
“Firstly we would like to thank Coach (Brad) Franks and Coach (Matt) Brown for their involvement and impact on the program, and we wish them the very best with their future endeavors,” said Reeves. “Brad has had great impact both as a player and coach during his time with Elon soccer and I truly appreciate all he has done for the program. As an alumni and friend, we will always welcome him back and look forward to seeing him this fall when we play Appalachian State.
“Matt played a key role in the continued development of our goalkeepers last fall, in particular assisting with (Matthew) Jegier’s strong performances and overall improvement as a high level keeper. I look forward to staying connected with him as he takes on the challenge of becoming the head coach at Shaw University.”
Sliwinski joined the Phoenix’s coaching staff during Reeves’ first season in 2017 after arriving from Fairfield University where he also served as the associate head coach since 2016. In his first season at Elon, Sliwinski helped the maroon and gold reach the CAA postseason for the fourth straight year while also assisting in Elon being one of the top teams in the country in goals against average, shutouts and save percentage and narrowly missing out on a NCAA at large bid.
Sliwinski was a member of Reeves’ coaching staff for five seasons at Radford. While at Radford, Sliwinski helped the Highlanders to 47 wins including double-digit win totals in 2014 (12) and 2012 (10). He was part of the 2014 staff that won the first of three Big South regular season Championships. Academically, Radford produced the Big South Scholar Athlete of the Year a year ago and earned a team GPA award from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) for five straight seasons. The program also boasted four Academic All-Americans over his final three seasons.
“Maciek is truly deserving of this promotion and title,” said Reeves. “I think everyone understands how closely we work together and can see his impact to all the programs he has been part of. He is an effective recruiter of the type of quality people and players we want in the program here at Elon. His daily hard work and commitment to the process of maintaining a professional environment for our players is truly appreciated.”
Sakiewicz comes to the Phoenix from Guilford College where he served as the lead assistant coach in 2017. Prior to Guilford, Sakiewicz assisted the Johnson & Wales University in Denver men’s soccer team, which finished 9-7-5 and was an AII-Conference finalist in 2016. He also served as the director of men’s soccer operations for Villanova in 2015.
Sakiewicz played for two seasons at NCAA Division II West Chester University (Pa.) before graduating in 2014. He began his coaching career as an assistant at Division III Rosemont College while finishing his degree at West Chester.
“We welcome Nick as a great addition to the staff,” said Reeves. “He is committed to doing any task that can make our program better and has an excellent background in all the facets that makes a program successful. He will assist in the recruitment of high-level student athletes to Elon and the daily operations that will see them develop and maximize their potential in all areas both on and off the field.”