ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Navy men's soccer head coach Tim O'Donohue announced Friday that assistant coach Mark Risbridger has been promoted to the position of Associate Head Coach.   
 
"Mark is an excellent on-field coach and he has done a very good job of recruiting for the program since he became a full-time coach on our staff," said O'Donohue. "He is the consummate professional and this promotion has been earned."
 
Over Risbridger's first four seasons as an assistant coach at Navy, the program has shown itself to be a consistent winner. Since the end of the 2018 season, Navy is 33-13-3, which is the best record in the Patriot League during that span.
 
The Midshipmen have boasted one of the top-offensive units in the league over the last four seasons, recording 236 points on 66 assists and 87 goals. Equal to its efforts on the attack is that of the Navy backline, which has allowed an average of just 1.06-goals per game during Risbridger's tenure.  
 
Navy has earned 16 individual All-Patriot League honors since 2018, highlighted by Matt Nocita (Sr., Porter Ranch, Calif.) becoming the first Patriot League men's soccer player to earn Defensive Player of the Year honors three times.  Risbridger assisted in the development of Nocita, who was selected with the seventh overall pick of the 2022 Major League Soccer SuperDraft by the New York Red Bulls. The selection made the center back the highest-drafted player in program and Patriot League men's soccer history. 
 
Risbridger is a 2013 graduate of Post University where he was four-year starter for the Eagles men's soccer program. He helped Post earn their highest national ranking in program history at No. 5 and was named the Post Athletics Student-Athlete of the Year and Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2012.
 
Following his playing career, Risbridger joined the Springfield College men's soccer coaching staff where he served as the associate head coach and recruiting coordinator from 2016-17 after serving as an assistant coach from 2013-15. Springfield was 15-1-3 in 2017 and advanced to the NCAA Division III Tournament Second Round.
 
"I want to thank Coach O'Donohue, Chet Gladchuk and Eric Ruden for this opportunity," said Risbridger. "Coming into work at the Naval Academy these past few years has been a privilege and I am excited to continue the work we have been doing. Coach O'Donohue has shown amazing faith and loyalty to me since I arrived in Annapolis and we are lucky to have an amazing group of guys in the locker room to work with."