Chase Gwynn has been named head men’s soccer coach at Central Christian College of the Bible, Director of Athletics Kori Zarzutzki announced on Tuesday.

CCCB will be relaunching it's men's soccer program after a two-year absence from the sport, preparing for competition during the 2024 season.

Gwynn, a former student-athlete at Gordon College, comes to Central Christian after one season as assistant and lead technical analyst for the men's soccer program at Gordon College in Wenham, Mass.

"We are excited about Chase and his passion in building our men's soccer program," Zarzutzki said. "Not only does he bring enthusiasm and knowledge of the game, but he will also be a great mentor to lead the men in the program."

A native of Apopka, Fla., Gwynn started his collegiate soccer playing career at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Ill., before transferring to Gordon to play his final two seasons.

As a player at Gordon, he was a part of a Commonwealth Coast Conference championship and NCAA Division III national tournament team. Additionally, in his senior season he was awarded First Team All-CCC honors, First Team All-Region, and NCAA DIII All-American honors after finishing top 10 nationally in five offensive categories.

After college, Gwynn played with Chattanooga FC in NISA-Pro, making three appearances, and multiple other professional United Soccer League teams without making an appearance. He also spent time with semi-pro Mississippi Brilla in USL-2, a ministry based club who work with underprivileged youth in Jackson, MS. 

"I’m incredibly thankful for the opportunity to be part of CCCB Men’s Soccer as it moves forward into a new chapter," Gwynn said. "I’d like to thank the CCCB leadership for their trust in and support of me leading the team, as well as those at the college who support the players and the program in ways that aren’t always apparent.

"I’m excited to contribute to a team where the players are able to grow in their relationships with Christ and use their talents to glorify Him on and off the soccer field. We want players who embody their faith, work hard in the classroom, and will contribute to a highly successful program on the pitch."

Gwynn graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Applied Physics from Gordon in 2021. 

The Saints have been faced with a decent share of adversity in the first year of intercollegiate men's soccer in five years. Often times playing shorthanded, the Central Christian men have persevered to four wins overall and three in Midwest Christian College Conference play. Later today they will compete as the No. 4 seed in the league tournament.

Central Christian (4-7) faces the top seed and seventh-ranked Manhattan Christian College in the semifinals of the MCCC Tournament at 3 p.m. in Ankeny, Iowa. The top four seeds play semifinals on Friday, winners and losers advance on Saturday to determine championship and third place finishes.

Two of the Saints' four wins of the season came against Ozark Christian College, while the other two came against Barclay College and Emmaus Bible College, a 4-0 victory on Monday. The other semifinal game includes second-seeded Faith Baptist Bible College versus third-seeded Calvary University. Earlier in the year, CCCB lost two matches to Faith Baptist and one to Calvary.

With a win today, the Saints would play in the championship match tomorrow at 12:30 p.m. The third place match will take place at 3 p.m. tomorrow.

Coverage of the 2021 MCCC Men's Soccer Tournament, including live stats and video, can be found at https://fbbceagles.com/tournaments/soc/MCCC_2021_Soccer/index.