Glad Bugariu begins his first season as Head Women’s Soccer Coach at South Carolina State University. Bugariu joins the SC State staff after spending three seasons at Belmont Abbey College in Belmont, North Carolina. In his three seasons at Belmont Abbey, Bugariu compiled a 52-12-2 overall record and 29-2-1 in Conference Carolina’s (previously CVAC) play.
Bugariu brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Lady Bulldog Program. He has coached at the collegiate, national, Olympic Development Program (ODP), and club levels and holds both the USSF “A” and UEFA “B” coaching licenses.
Last season his Belmont Abbey team finished 18-4-1 overall, undefeated in the conference at 11-0 record, and second at the conference tournament. During the undefeated season, numerous conference records were broken, including the most shutouts in a season (10), least goals allowed (1), and lowest goals against average (.09). The Abbey, as it is known, finished fourth in the region by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA), had the third best defense in the country for NCAA Division II teams (9 goals allowed), and reached as high as 22nd in the nation during the season. Individual awards included five players named First-Team All Conference with three gathering All-Region honors.
In the 2006 season, the Abbey finished 16-4-1 and won the CVAC (now Conference Carolinas) tournament. It was the first time a Belmont Abbey coach has led the women’s soccer program to back-to-back conference championships. Additionally, two players were named to the NSCAA All-Region team, while four earned All-CVAC recognition.
In his first season with the Abbey (2005) Bugariu guided the team to an 18-4 record, which was the best at the time at the college since 1999, while capturing the CVAC Tournament Title and a share of the regular season title with Pfeiffer. His 2005 team also finished fifth in the regional poll. Other accolades earned in the 2005 season include being ranked as the second most improved team in the nation by the NCAA, finishing 11th in the country for shutouts, defeating both the #3 and #10 ranked teams in the nation, and having two players earning NSCAA All-Region honors.
Prior to his short but stellar career at Belmont Abbey, Bugariu worked in Santa Fe, New Mexico as the Director of Coaching for the Northern Soccer Club. During this time the club not only grew in size, but had a number of teams appear in the New Mexico Youth Soccer Association State Cup semi-finals and finals, with one team reaching the US Youth Soccer Association (USYSA) Region IV quarterfinals. He also played a key role in the development of the Pueblo soccer outreach program, a project geared to introduce soccer into Native American communities.
In addition to his club duties, Bugariu worked with the Grenada Football (Soccer is known as football internationally) Association, serving as assistant men’s national team coach during the World Cup and Gold Cup qualifying tournaments. During his time with Grenada, the country climbed a record 13 places in the FIFA (soccer governing body) rankings and narrowly lost to the United States during World Cup qualifying.
Also during his time in New Mexico, Bugariu was also very involved with the ODP serving as head coach of the 1988 Girls team and later as the Director of Goalkeeping for the New Mexico Youth Soccer Association. He also served on the state coaching education instructional staff and as an NSCAA Regional Staff Coach. Prior to leaving New Mexico, Bugariu spent time at Louisburg Junior College and Meredith College as the head women’s soccer coach.
From 2000-2002, Bugariu took his expertise to the U.S Virgin Islands where he served as the Technical Director/National Team Coach, coaching both the men’s and women’s national teams in international competition. He was responsible for the overall development of soccer in the country and coached over 30 international games. During his tenure, the Virgin Islands advanced in the FIFA rankings for the first time in history, recording such historic achievements as the creation of a women’s national team program, qualifying for the Copa Caribe, and increasing soccer participation 120% in the country.
Born in Bucharest, Romania, Bugariu came to the United States at the age of 10 and holds a degree in Recreation and Leisure Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He was an All Region selection goalkeeper at Brevard College in North Carolina and had a stint with Romanian 4th division club Soimii Sibiu.
