LA College Coaching Excellence: Jane Alukonis and Margueritte Aozasa

The two top schools representing Los Angeles are also led by two top female coaches: Jane Alukonis and Margueritte Aozasa. Alukonis, head coach at USC, and Aozasa, head coach at UCLA, have earned appraisals for their teams’ success this season. Let’s dive into the coaching masterclass happening at these two LA colleges.

Jane Alukonis

 

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Alukonis joined USC’s program in 2022 after being the assistant coach at UCLA for four years. Since being in the program, Alukonis has led USC to success. This most recent season, USC has won 16 games in one of the toughest leagues, The Big Ten. Recently, they beat UCLA, Ohio State, and Penn State. Their highest winning streak this season was eight games in a row. These statistics are unsurprising, seeing as how she also helped lead UCLA to two Pac-12 championships and an NCAA College Cup.

Prior to her coaching career, Alukonis was a four-year starter for Duke from 2006-2009. Additionally, growing up, Alukonis was a defender and midfielder for the U-16 and U-17 Youth National Team. She was the fifth female head coach for the USC Women’s soccer team and, within two years, has significantly impacted the team’s legacy.

Margueritte Aozasa

 

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Aozasa has been the head coach at UCLA since 2021. She had a fantastic first season as she was named the first rookie head coach and the first woman of color to ever win the NCAA Division 1 Women’s Soccer Championship. Within her first year, Aozasa led UCLA to earn the number one ranking in the final of their season. The Bruins won their first 13 games, and Aozasa won Pac-12 Coach of the Year. This most recent season, UCLA won 16 games and the Big 10 championship in their first time being a part of the league. During the season, UCLA also beat top teams like BYU, Ohio State and Penn State.

Recently, Aozasa also became a part of the U-23 National Team as an assistant coach. She then earned her second consecutive Pac-12 Coach of the Year award in 2023. Prior to UCLA, Aozasa was an assistant coach at Sanford from 2015 to 2021. Aozasa had her own success as an athlete, playing as a four-year starter at Santa Clara as a midfielder, center back, and team captain.

 

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Having recently gone head-to-head in Los Angeles, Alukonis and Aozasa have proven themselves as successful leaders of their teams. Alukonia and Aozasa’s impact is growing exponentially, and the two teams have increasingly become more competitive with each other.

Featured image via @uclawsoccer

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