In 12 seasons at Northwestern State, Jimmy Mitchell has transformed the Demon soccer program into one that is recognized as a serious threat every year in and out of conference play.
Bringing a determined mentality to the field, Mitchell is highly regarded by his coaching peers in the Northwestern State athletic department as well as around the Southland Conference and state. In addition to being looked at for his affable demeanor, he is respected for the achievements of the Northwestern State soccer program under his leadership.
“For the young women in the Demon soccer program, and for their familier, Jimmy has been a strong and steady figure and an outstanding head coach,” said Demon director of athletics Greg Burke. “He’s a friend to everyone in our department and a supporter of all things Northwestern. He is relentless in his efforts to continue improving Demon soccer and his list of achievements speak for themselves.”
Mitchell has taken the Lady Demons to three NCAA tournament appearance in his tenure at Northwestern State. This feat makes NSU the only team in Louisiana to earn three NCAA Tournament berths. The first came in 2000 after winning the Southland Conference regular season and tournament titles. Conference tournament titles took the Lady Demons to the postseason in both 2002 and 2005.
The 2000 season team that celebrated NSU’s first NCAA tournament appearance also celebrated becoming the only Louisiana team to ever reach the NCAA tournament. The same team also became the first Southland Conference team to win both regular season and tournament title. With a 15-8 overall record and 10-2 conference mark, the Lady Demons were defeated in the NCAA tournament by Montana who went on to beat Washington in the second round.
That year, the Lady Demons set the Southland Conference records for wins, conference wins, goals (56), and corner kicks in a game (19) and season (129). The 2000 team also set 19 team records and 29 other individual records. Before losing in the NCAA tournament, the Demons won nine consecutive game, matching another school record.
They also extended a home winning streak to 13 games, another school mark.
The 2000 squad placed five players on the All-SLC first team and for on the All-Louisiana. Shannon Tenney was named Louisiana Newcomer of the Year.
The 2001 season was plagued with injuries to several key players which caused the Lady Demons to have a losing record for the first time since Mitchell took over in 1999.
In 2002, five first team All-SLC selections again came from the NCAA tournament bound Northwestern State team. The Southland Conference Player of the Year (Katie Priest) and Freshman of the Year (Heather Penico) also came from the Lady Demons. Priest and Penico also represented NSU on the All-Lousisana first team while three other Lady Demons earned honorable mention.
After posting a 12-5-5 overall record and taking another Southland Conference tournament title, the 2002 Lady Demons took an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament to College Station to face Texas A&M.
Mitchell led the team to a third place SLC finish in 2003 and a second place finish in 2004. The 2004 team also made an appearance in the SLC postseason tournament.
In 2005, Mitchell steered the Lady Demons to their third Southland Conference tournament title and third trip to the NCAA Tournament. The postseason was a repeat of 2002, traveling to College Station and being defeated by Texas A&M.
In 2006, the Lady Demons posted a 9-9-2 record and finished fourth in the SLC. Mitchell’s squad bounced back in 2007 with a record of 11-7-2 while playing possibly the toughest schedule in school history. In the 11 wins, the Lady Demons defeated in-state rivals Centenary, Louisiana Tech, Louisiana-Monroe, Southeastern Louisiana, Louisiana-Lafayette, Nicholls, Southern, and tied SLC champion McNeese State.
Mitchell’s team received public recognition from the NCAA for its perfect APR of 1.000 of the multi-year rate in 2004 and 2006 and was well above the national average for the 2008-09 year. The NCAA annually recognizes college sports teams from around the country that scheme an APR score in the top 10 percent of all squads in their respective sports. The APR is a point system based on scholarship athletes’ eligibility and retention for a predetermined time period. It is essentially measures how well institutions, and individual sports, are doing in advancing their student-athletes toward graduation.
Before coming to Natchitoches in 1999, Mitchell slated seven years of head coaching experience with a 73-57-3 overall record. Just one year prior to taking the reigns at NSU, Mitchell led his Belmont Abbey team to a 20-4 record and an NCAA Division II Elite Eight appearance. That team was eliminated from the the NCAA field by Lynn University which went on to win the national championship that season. Mitchell also served as an assistant coach at North Carolina-Charlotte from 1994-1995 when the 49ers were ranked in the nation’s top 10 first-year programs in Division I.
While Mitchell can boast numerous team honors, he also has several individual honors on his shelf. He was named Southland Conference Coach of the Year in 2000 and 2002 and Louisiana Coach of the Year this same seasons. In 1998, he was named Coach of the Year for the Carolina-Virginia Conference after his team swept regular season and tournament titles and advance to the brink of the NCAA Final Four. He earned that same honor in 1996 when his Belmont Abbey team posted a 13-8 record from 4-12 in the 2005 season.
Mitchell received a contract extension prior to the beginning of the 2007 season. His multi-year deal joined him with men’s basketball coach Mike McConathy as the only multi-year deal in school history.
“The high level of performance athletically and academically by our women’s soccer and men’s basketball teams represent the ideal of what we aim for at Northwestern State University,” said Burke. “Mike and Jimmy are extremely dedicated, loyal, and passionate about the welfare of their student-athletes, and they are deserving of this token of appreciation from the university.
The Lady Demon Soccer Complex has also undergone transformation with Mitchell at the helm. Lights were added to the field before the 2004 season and an improved playing surface was laid. New concession facilities and restrooms were added while new leisure areas along the fence of the playing field spruce up the entire complex. A new entrance area with gates is aesthetically pleasing and provides handicap accessibility. And the latest addition was the construction of a two-level, air conditioned press box in 2010. With these and other improvements the Demon Soccer Complex has become one of the premier soccer facilities in the region.
The Mitchells have settled in Natchitoches with their beloved Boykin Spaniels: Mattie, Rusty, and Sassie. Glenda, who received her doctorate degree in August of 2003, is a teacher at the Louisiana School for Math, Science, and the Arts, an academically accelerated residential high school serving some of the state’s elite young minds. The Mitchells have two sons- Brody, who was born March 13, 2006 and Cole, April 30, 2008. When he’s not coaching or cheering for other NSU teams, Coach Mitchell enjoys outdoor sports such as fishing and duck hunting.
