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University of Mount Olive

University of Mount Olive Dept of Athletics
 586 Henderson Street Mount Olive, NC 28365
Division 2 North Carolina Southeast
Private Small Competitive team
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Coaches

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Ian Spooner

Ian Spooner joined the Trojans as an assistant coach in January of 2021.


Spooner comes to Mount Olive after spending the past three years as a assistant coach for the men's soccer team at Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, FL. During this time, Spooner helped the Eagles post a 9-8-2 record and reached the ASUN Championship game for the fifth time in program history. Spooner also concluded his first season with the Eagles helping the squad to a 9-5-2 record in 2018 as they captured their seventh ASUN regular season title, including six all-conference nods. As the team’s goalkeeper coach, Spooner helped mold Gustavo Vasconcelos into the ASUN Goalkeeper of the Year in 2018, the program’s third overall winner.


Before FGCU, Spooner spent the previous 10 seasons at San Jacinto College in Texas, including the last six as the head coach of the junior college’s men’s soccer team. A Houston native, Spooner served four years as an assistant coach and was the interim head coach in 2012.


In his six seasons in charge of the Houston-based team, Spooner led San Jacinto to double-figure victories five times, made two NJCAA Final Four appearances (2013, 2016), twice set the program’s single-season wins record and produced five All-Americans. All told, Spooner – who also served as an adjunct professor during his time as the head coach – orchestrated an 80-37-4 record (.678 winning percentage).


Ian Spooner was a four-year starter at Western Michigan from 2001-2004, and proved to be a valuable goalkeeper for the team. While with the Broncos, he was named the club’s Most Valuable Player in 2004 and its Newcomer of the Year in 2001.


Spooner helped the Broncos to the 2003 MAC Championship crown and NCAA Tournament appearance, and a runner-up MAC Tournament finish in 2004. He holds a bachelor’s degree in communication from the Kalamazoo-based school.

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Carlos Guzman-Cruz

Carlos Guzman-Cruz enters his second season as an assistant coach at Mount Olive in 2023.


With the promotion, Guzman-Cruz will also serve as the director of operations and recruiting coordinator for the men’s soccer team. He joined the program in August 2022 and aided the Trojans to an appearance in the Conference Carolinas Tournament. Mount Olive featured one of the top offenses in NCAA Division II after ranking sixth in the country with 2.65 goals per game and seventh with 7.18 points per game. UMO also led the Conference Carolinas with 1.88 assists per game after netting 45 goals last season. The Trojans featured four all-conference selections in 2022 after posting a 9-6-2 overall record with a 6-1-1 mark at Amon Field.


Prior to joining UMO, Guzman-Cruz served a brief stint as a volunteer assistant coach at North Carolina Wesleyan.


Guzman-Cruz worked as a volunteer associate head coach for the Harnett Central High School men’s varsity soccer program for the 2021-22 season and assisted the team to its first conference championship and playoff win since 2014-15.


He also assisted with operating and managing different programs within North Carolina Football Club Youth in Raleigh, NC, including the College Showcase Series Tournaments, Summer Camps, Supplemental Training (Elite Technique), and Outreach Programs (La Liga De Sol).


Guzman-Cruz currently serves as a Head Coach at North Carolina Football Club Youth with the U19 & U18 Boys Classic group.


He completed his bachelor’s degree in sport management from NC State University in 2021.


Guzman-Cruz holds a “C” level coaching license from the United States Soccer Federation.

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