At noon on Feb. 21, the women’s soccer team waited anxiously in the Sommer Center conference room for the news of their next head coach. The energy inside the room was electric. As Phil Talavinia walked into the room, everyone’s eyes watched him, eagerly waiting for the name of their new head coach.
Kevin Gregory is the new women’s soccer head coach. He has not only coached at Hendrix College for the past four years, but he also attended and played there for his undergraduate years.
Photo by Dani Easterday
Gregory has been involved with soccer for many years. His passion for the sport started at a young age.
“My dad has been a men’s college coach since I was seven,” Gregory said. “He was coaching a high school team when I was born, so my family has always been a soccer family.”
His acceptance of the head coach position led to him leaving his home near Hendrix College in order to move to Ohio.
“Finding a place to live without being able to physically come shop around myself was probably the hardest part of moving here,” Gregory said. “It was a little scary, but we made it work.”
However, Gregory has been pleasantly surprised by his move to Ohio.
“The south always has this stigma of being hospitable but I have found that the North is just as hospitable, if not more so,” Gregory said.
When he’s not working in his office or out on the soccer field, Gregory can be found doing various other physical activities.
“I like to play basketball, golf, bike, and I like to watch movies,” Gregory said.
Some of his favorite movies are Disney movies. His most favorite Disney movie is, “Cool Runnings.” The movie is about the Jamaican bobsled team and their road to glory at the Olympics.
“This movie will definitely have to be a bus movie,” Gregory said.
One of the benefits of traveling to other colleges for athletic games is that the teams are allowed to watch movies on the bus.
Gregory is excited to start the outdoor spring season with the soccer team, especially since it will be his first time working with the team.
“I just remember being a player and itching to get back out on the field when the spring rolled around,” Gregory said.
Courtney Davis, one of the sophomore soccer members on the team search committee, is excited to see what will happen under Gregory’s leadership.
“I am most excited to see how the transformation process is handled,” Davis said.
The soccer team has been in the rebuilding stage for the past season. The transformation process refers to how the team continues to build and transform under his leadership.
The first time meeting a new coach can be a little nerve-racking but Davis found him to be very likable.
“I really liked him, and I thought he presented himself well,” Davis said.
Her views on him have only grown since then.
“I think Coach Kevin has really good plans for our team, and I think he’s going to be a really good fit for our team,” Davis said.
