Staten Island, NY | Jackie Bruno, CSI Head Women's Soccer Coach since the close of the 2019 season, has announced she is stepping down.  Bruno, a Staten Island native, has announced that she is heading to the west coast, accepting an assistant coaching position at California State Polytechnic University - Pomona, a NCAA Division II institution within the California Collegiate Athletic Association. 

Bruno, who doubled as the College of Staten Island Equipment Manager, will leave having not amassed a record with the Dolphins, as her debut season in 2020 was wiped out due to COVID-19.  Still, Bruno was successful in launching the Division II era of Women's Soccer at the College of Staten Island, complete with a pair of robust recruiting classes set to make their debut in 2021.

"Although I am sad to see Jackie go, I am extremely excited for her next opportunity," said Director of Athletics T.J. Tibbs. "This is an opportunity that she earned through the great contributions she has made to our department in such a short amount of time. She is going to be an incredible asset for Cal State – Pomona and they are extremely fortunate to acquire her. She is an incredible leader and connector of people and will contribute greatly to the growth of their student-athletes."

The decision to step away for Bruno on the cusp of making her on-the-field debut at CSI was not easy, according to the coach, but the former soccer pro credits unique timing to her decision to step away at this time.

"Staten Island and CSI have been home to me, but in terms of a career move, this was a decision I could not pass on," Bruno said.  "Getting to know the coaching staff, program, and the people at the Cal Poly as a whole, made it the right choice as difficult as it was.  Even with having family on the west coast, I never would have thought of picking up and moving to California, but I felt the culmination of the rights things coming together made this an opportunity I felt I should take for my growth as a coach."  

A former high school standout on Staten Island and then top-level collegiate and professional player, Bruno spent time at nearby Wagner College as a Graduate Assistant coach and locally with the New York/New Jersey Red Bulls Grassroots Programs.  The appointment at the College of Staten Island was her first collegiate head coaching assignment.  Named coach almost immediately following CSI's 2019 season, Bruno started by bolstering the roster with the intention of putting a competitive dent into the East Coast Conference in 2020.  Alas, the season was wiped out due to COVID, making Bruno the longest-tenured CSI coach to not have had the chance to play a game (the team's 2020 spring season was also canceled).  It didn't stop her from continuing the trend, bringing in over a dozen more faces in the 2021-22 class at CSI, set to make their debut this fall.

"I know how wonderful CSI is and I was so fortunate to inherit such a good group of women coming into the program, that it was easy for me to talk about our team and to show how much we want others to be a part of that environment," she said.  "Recruiting is always a lot of work and COVID didn't make it easier, but having the kind of returners we had who were passionate and could see how much I cared made it easy for us to show how special it is to be a part of what is happening here.  We've recruited a lot of players in terms of volume, but I also feel we brought in a great deal of quality on the pitch and it's an exciting time.  When you work for a great school and have good people involved with the program, the difficult work is made easier, and I felt we did a nice job over that time."   

Bruno's new destination at Cal Poly - Pomona is also no stranger to success on the pitch.  Bruno will make her debut alongside Head Coach Jay Mason, who will enter his sixth season with the Broncos.  Forced to also suspend their 2020 season due to the pandemic, the Broncos finished 13-5-3 in 2019, falling in the opening round of the NCAA Division II National Championship Tournament.  Bruno is hoping to utilize some of her experience at CSI into her newest position in the Golden State.

"I think just the fact that I was a first-year Head Coach and having COVID happen really taught me how important building interpersonal relationships are and I plan to use that going forward," she explained.  "When the competitive piece kicks in, we can get lost in the training and games, and grinding it out every day, that we forget how important connecting individually is, and COVID really brought that to light when the competitive piece was removed, and our relationship was reduced to phone calls and Zoom meetings.  I always look at our student-athletes as if they were my own children, and while you know they are mature and grown, they still need that connectivity and support, and it goes both ways.  I learned that a great deal in my time at CSI and will continue to emphasize that."  

The College of Staten Island wishes the best to Bruno, and will begin the search for a new head coach immediately.