Marshall University Athletics
Men's Soccer
Ivanovic, Petsa
Petsa Ivanovic
- Title:
- Assistant Coach, 3rd season
- Email:
- ivanovic@marshall.edu
- Phone:
- 2434
Petsa Ivanovic finished his fifth season in 2021 with the team, and helped lead the Herd to lifting the 2020 College Cup National Championship Trophy in the spring of 2021. He joined the team as a volunteer coach in July of 2017 and became a full-time assistant before the 2018 season. Ivanovic has played an important role in bringing incredible talent to Marshall and moving the Herd from Conference USA contender, to National Champion.
While Ivanovic has been coaching in Huntington, the men’s soccer staff was named the United Soccer Coaches Southeast Region Coaching Staff of the Year in 2019 and again in 2020-21, as well as being honored as the National Coaching Staff of the Year in 2020-21.
Ivanovic has helped lead the Herd to a pair of Conference USA semi-final round appearances in 2017 and 2018, then back-to-back C-USA Championships in 2019 and the spring of 2021 after the 2020 fall season was postponed due to COVID-19. The Herd has also had three-straight NCAA Tournament appearances as well as being ranked in the United Soccer Coaches/NCAA top 25 poll 30-straight weeks and in the top ten 17 times.
Over the past five seasons, Marshall has had 32 players named All-Conference, 25 times honored as league players of the week, ten on the C-USA All-Tournament team, 14 named All-Region, six named all-academic, six Scholar All-Region, four United Soccer Coaches All-Americans, two Scholar All-Americans and four players taken in the MLS Superdraft. Players have been honored 73 times on the Conference USA Commissioner’s Honor Roll (GPA of 3.00 or better) and 22 have received the Conference USA Academic Medal for a GPA of 3.75 or better.
In 2021, Marshall won double-digit matches for the third-straight year, program’s longest streak since 1995-98, with 11 more wins. The Herd was ranked in the top 25 throughout the season and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Marshall’s defense set two more team records with seven-straight clean sheets and a span of 760 minutes and 37 seconds without conceding a goal. From 2019 through 2021, the Herd’s defense has earned 28 shutouts, the most in a three-year span in team history.
Marshall’s ball-control and stingy defense led the way to an NCAA-leading 11 shutouts including the final three matches of the NCAA Tournament. In the 2020-21 season, the Herd outscored its opponents 30-8, outshot the competition 272-118 and 120-34 on goal. The Green & White ended the year with a 13-2-3 overall record and 6-0-1 in conference action.
The Herd’s attacking style led to 47 goals scored, third-most in program history and the most since 2000 (50). Marshall fought its way into the national conversation with its first rankings since 2001. The Herd entered the Top 25 on Oct. 15 at No. 21 overall and remained ranked for the rest of the season. Marshall ended the year No. 11 in the nation. In helping to bring two championships (regular season and tournament) to Huntington, Marshall also brought an exciting brand of soccer that saw the crowd at Hoops Family Field overflow. The Herd played in front of a record crowd of 2,032 for Senior Day against No. 15 Kentucky and came away with a 1-0 upset victory. Later, Marshall set the top mark for attendance again at Hoops Family Field, and in either the first or second round of the NCAA Tournament, as 2,126 packed the stadium to see the Herd defeat West Virginia, 2-1, to advance to the third round. For their efforts, the coaches were honored as the 2019 United Soccer Coaches Southeast Region Coaching Staff of the Year.
Ivanovic rejoined Grassie after working together for three years at the University Charleston from 2012-14. Originally from Palanka, Serbia, Ivanovic moved to Mladost Apatin academy at the age of 12. He made his professional debut when he was 17. Ivanovic spent another year playing second division in Serbia before arriving at the University of Charleston in 2008. In 2009, Ivanovic was one of the key players in Charleston’s squad that ended the season in the Elite 8 and ranked number seven in the NCAA DII.
For his efforts on the field Ivanovic earned All-American accolades. In 2010 he moved to NCAA DI Jacksonville University in Florida where he captained the team for two years earning Academic All-Conference First team award in his senior year.
After graduating from Jacksonville University with a degree in Business Management, Ivanovic returned to West Virginia to play PDL soccer for the WV Chaos, which at the time was at coached by Chris Grassie. After working together in the PDL, Coach Grassie brought Ivanovic on staff at Charleston, first as a volunteer, and then as an assistant coach.
In his three years at UC, Ivanovic played a big role in helping the Golden Eagles to the school’s first NCAA National Final in 2014. UC also spend most of the season as the No. 1 nationally ranked team. Ivanovic took key roles in video analysis, development of nutrition and fitness programs as well as coaching training sessions. He was also instrumental in getting UC’s Junior Varsity team up and running.
While at UC, Ivanovic also earned a graduate degree in Strategic Leadership, graduating in Dec. 2014. He currently holds a USSF D license and has been working with numerous youth soccer clubs in the Charleston/Huntington area for eight years winning three state championships along the way.
Ivanovic is also the head coach for WV ODP 2000 boys’ team, WV Futbol Club 2002 boys’ team, and WV Futbol Club 2004 girls’ team.
While Ivanovic has been coaching in Huntington, the men’s soccer staff was named the United Soccer Coaches Southeast Region Coaching Staff of the Year in 2019 and again in 2020-21, as well as being honored as the National Coaching Staff of the Year in 2020-21.
Ivanovic has helped lead the Herd to a pair of Conference USA semi-final round appearances in 2017 and 2018, then back-to-back C-USA Championships in 2019 and the spring of 2021 after the 2020 fall season was postponed due to COVID-19. The Herd has also had three-straight NCAA Tournament appearances as well as being ranked in the United Soccer Coaches/NCAA top 25 poll 30-straight weeks and in the top ten 17 times.
Over the past five seasons, Marshall has had 32 players named All-Conference, 25 times honored as league players of the week, ten on the C-USA All-Tournament team, 14 named All-Region, six named all-academic, six Scholar All-Region, four United Soccer Coaches All-Americans, two Scholar All-Americans and four players taken in the MLS Superdraft. Players have been honored 73 times on the Conference USA Commissioner’s Honor Roll (GPA of 3.00 or better) and 22 have received the Conference USA Academic Medal for a GPA of 3.75 or better.
In 2021, Marshall won double-digit matches for the third-straight year, program’s longest streak since 1995-98, with 11 more wins. The Herd was ranked in the top 25 throughout the season and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Marshall’s defense set two more team records with seven-straight clean sheets and a span of 760 minutes and 37 seconds without conceding a goal. From 2019 through 2021, the Herd’s defense has earned 28 shutouts, the most in a three-year span in team history.
Marshall’s ball-control and stingy defense led the way to an NCAA-leading 11 shutouts including the final three matches of the NCAA Tournament. In the 2020-21 season, the Herd outscored its opponents 30-8, outshot the competition 272-118 and 120-34 on goal. The Green & White ended the year with a 13-2-3 overall record and 6-0-1 in conference action.
The Herd’s attacking style led to 47 goals scored, third-most in program history and the most since 2000 (50). Marshall fought its way into the national conversation with its first rankings since 2001. The Herd entered the Top 25 on Oct. 15 at No. 21 overall and remained ranked for the rest of the season. Marshall ended the year No. 11 in the nation. In helping to bring two championships (regular season and tournament) to Huntington, Marshall also brought an exciting brand of soccer that saw the crowd at Hoops Family Field overflow. The Herd played in front of a record crowd of 2,032 for Senior Day against No. 15 Kentucky and came away with a 1-0 upset victory. Later, Marshall set the top mark for attendance again at Hoops Family Field, and in either the first or second round of the NCAA Tournament, as 2,126 packed the stadium to see the Herd defeat West Virginia, 2-1, to advance to the third round. For their efforts, the coaches were honored as the 2019 United Soccer Coaches Southeast Region Coaching Staff of the Year.
Ivanovic rejoined Grassie after working together for three years at the University Charleston from 2012-14. Originally from Palanka, Serbia, Ivanovic moved to Mladost Apatin academy at the age of 12. He made his professional debut when he was 17. Ivanovic spent another year playing second division in Serbia before arriving at the University of Charleston in 2008. In 2009, Ivanovic was one of the key players in Charleston’s squad that ended the season in the Elite 8 and ranked number seven in the NCAA DII.
For his efforts on the field Ivanovic earned All-American accolades. In 2010 he moved to NCAA DI Jacksonville University in Florida where he captained the team for two years earning Academic All-Conference First team award in his senior year.
After graduating from Jacksonville University with a degree in Business Management, Ivanovic returned to West Virginia to play PDL soccer for the WV Chaos, which at the time was at coached by Chris Grassie. After working together in the PDL, Coach Grassie brought Ivanovic on staff at Charleston, first as a volunteer, and then as an assistant coach.
In his three years at UC, Ivanovic played a big role in helping the Golden Eagles to the school’s first NCAA National Final in 2014. UC also spend most of the season as the No. 1 nationally ranked team. Ivanovic took key roles in video analysis, development of nutrition and fitness programs as well as coaching training sessions. He was also instrumental in getting UC’s Junior Varsity team up and running.
While at UC, Ivanovic also earned a graduate degree in Strategic Leadership, graduating in Dec. 2014. He currently holds a USSF D license and has been working with numerous youth soccer clubs in the Charleston/Huntington area for eight years winning three state championships along the way.
Ivanovic is also the head coach for WV ODP 2000 boys’ team, WV Futbol Club 2002 boys’ team, and WV Futbol Club 2004 girls’ team.
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