UMBC is blessed with many outstanding head coaches, a group of dedicated professionals that have helped build the Retrievers into one of this region's most respected athletic programs. One member of that coaching fraternity, Head Men's Soccer Coach Pete Caringi, recently achieved a major milestone in his career, earning his 300th (currently 302-105-22) career collegiate coaching victory on September 1 of this season. Perhaps because the Retriever mentor has accomplished so much in his playing and coaching careers, that landmark victory was just another "brick in the wall" for the East Baltimore native.
"It was just another win," said Coach Caringi. "I am always looking forward to the next game, so it's hard to distract me with a record like that during the season. Plus, I consider myself a young coach with a lot of years left."
Coach Caringi is a true Baltimore and UMBC success story. He played for the legendary coach Bill Karpovich at Calvert Hall, and then went on to become a two-time All American at the University of Baltimore ('78). His 70 career goals is ranked 12th on the all-time Division II scoring list and he captained the 1975 UB squad to an NCAA Division II national championship. After spending some time as a professional player with the NASL's Washington Diplomats, Caringi picked up a whistle at nearby Essex Community College in 1981.
Caringi had ten brilliant seasons on Rossville Boulevard, compiling a record of 170-27-8. He was named National Junior College Coach of the Year in 1984 and 1989, as the Knights played in the national title game in both seasons. In 1994, Caringi was inducted into the NJCAA Hall of Fame.
In the spring of 1991, UMBC Athletic Director Charles Brown hired Caringi as UMBC's first full-time men's soccer coach. A year earlier, Caringi had piloted the American Professional Soccer League's Maryland Bays to a 20-5 record and the league title. In his first three years, UMBC's new mentor won a pair of regular season conference championships as the 1991 and 1993 teams tied school records with 15 wins in each season.
By the end of the decade, Caringi had rebuilt the Retrievers into a national power. The 1999 team led the nation in winning percentage (19-1-2) and earned the school's first trip to the NCAA Tournament before falling to #1-ranked Duke, 4-3, in overtime, in Durham, North Carolina. The following year saw the Retrievers nationally ranked again as they posted a win over Maryland. No less than seven Caringi-coached Retriever players over the last three seasons have been drafted professionally, including last season's Major Indoor Soccer League Rookie of the Year, Baltimore Blast defender Billy Nelson.
Entering the 2002 season, Caringi was ranked 37th among all active Division I soccer coaches with a winning percentage of 62.7 percent. He was inducted into the Maryland Soccer Hall of Fame in 1998.
Coach Caringi has made a lasting impression on many of the athletes he has coached. Of all the victories and championships, Caringi cherishes his ongoing relationships with his players the most. One of those players is Pete Eibner, '91, a financial advisor and locally-known professional comedian. "Coach Caringi instilled in us the value of outworking the competition, playing with passion and preparing properly. All of those lessons I have been able to take directly off the field and into my personal and professional life," said Eibner.
So what's left for someone that has achieved so much in his chosen profession? "There is still a lot I want to achieve at UMBC," said Caringi. "I still get excited about every game, every season. There are goals and aspirations I continue to have for this program at a national level. I am as motivated now as ever."
