Sorenson earns NorCal coach of year
By Thomas Lawrence
Adrienne Sorenson has accomplished more in her 20s than some soccer coaches do over the course of a career.
Sorenson inherited the head women's soccer position at Delta College at age 22 in 2010, and was the youngest active collegiate head coach in the nation.
She wasted no time rebuilding the Mustangs into a regional force.
Delta has made the California Community College Athletic Association regional playoffs for five consecutive seasons, and this autumn, took third place in the Big 8 Conference while setting several program records.
For her efforts, Sorenson was named the California Community College Soccer Coaches Association Northern California Women's Soccer Coach of the Year Thursday at a banquet at De Anza College in Cupertino.
"Being honored as coach of the year is really a humbling experience," Sorenson said, according to a Delta press release. "This award means a lot to me because it was voted on by my colleagues. I am so grateful for my team and assistant coach Alexia Poon."
The Mustangs set new program records for wins in a season (15), consecutive wins (10), unbeaten streak (12 matches), best Big 8 record (8-3-3) and goals against (13).
Delta earned the No. 3 seed in the NorCal playoffs, and was upset by No. 14 Cosumnes River – a team it had beaten twice in the regular season.
"It was a matchup between two evenly-matched teams," Sorenson told The Record after the match. "I thought they were a little better than us."
Sorenson played at Sierra College in Rocklin, a Big 8 opponent of Delta, where she led the Wolverines to a Big 8 championship in 2005. She then transferred to Stanislaus State, where she led the Warriors in points as a senior.
After graduating, Sorenson was hired as the top assistant for head coach Gabriel Bolton and worked with him for a year.
Sorenson's on-field impact at Delta started to take hold in 2012, when the Mustangs finished 13-5-4.
In Sorenson's tenure, 93 percent of her Delta sophomores have transferred to four-year universities, including many on athletic scholarships.
Delta, which has been playing at Pacific's Gardemeyer Field, will have a new soccer facility, due to be ready in spring of 2016.