North Carolina State University at Raleigh Women's Soccer

Gary Higgins enters his second season at NC State in 2026 after being named head coach of the Wolfpack women’s soccer program in December 2024. A respected and accomplished leader with a proven track record of success, Higgins owns a career record of 115-57-32 across 11 seasons as a head coach. The 2025 slate was Higgins' first year leading the Pack, where he guided the team to a 5-9-4 campaign that saw the most wins in a season for the program since 2022. The team also won four ACC contests, the most since 2021. During the campaign, Higgins' lead NC State to a six-match unbeaten streak in league play, which tied the program record for most conference games without a loss. Higgins joined NC State following three seasons as head coach at East Carolina, where he guided the team to its first conference title in the 30-year history of the program. During his final season with the Pirates in 2024, he led East Carolina to a 10-4-7 record, an American Athletic Conference championship, and the program’s first appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Six players earned spots on AAC postseason teams under his leadership. In 2023, his second season as ECU head coach, Higgins led the Pirates to a 9-5-5 finish, marking the program’s first record above .500 since 2018. Four players earned all-conference recognition including the league’s player of the year, the first ECU player to earn that honor since 2008, and the conference’s defensive player of the year. In his first season in Greenville, Hi

David Rodriguez is entering his second season as an assistant coach with NC State women’s soccer after joining head coach Gary Higgins’ staff in February 2025. During his first season in Raleigh, he helped the Wolfpack to a 5-9-4 campaign that saw the most wins in a season for the program since 2022. The team won four ACC contests, the most since 2021, while going on a a six-match unbeaten streak in league play, which tied the program record for most conference games without a loss. Rodriguez came to Raleigh after three years as head coach of the NC Courage Academy, bringing with him more than a decade of coaching experience at both the collegiate and club levels. Since 2014, Rodriguez has held several coaching roles with North Carolina FC Youth. He has served as the U13 to U19 Classic North Boys Director, coached within the NCFC Academy Program since 2017, and worked as an assistant coach with the North Carolina FC U23 team. Rodriguez’s additional coaching experience includes time as a volunteer assistant with the men’s soccer programs at both Louisburg College and the University of North Carolina. He currently holds a United States Soccer Federation B license. Rodriguez played collegiately at the University of North Carolina from 2006 to 2010, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in exercise and sport science with a concentration in sport administration. Following his collegiate career, he played semi professionally with Reading United and Greensboro Dynamo of the USL Premie

Joanna Fennema enters her second season with NC State as associate head coach in 2026 after joining head coach Gary Higgins’ staff in January 2025. During her first season in Raleigh, she helped the Wolfpack to a 5-9-4 campaign that saw the most wins in a season for the program since 2022. The team won four ACC contests, the most since 2021, while going on a a six-match unbeaten streak in league play, which tied the program record for most conference games without a loss. Before coming to NC State, Fennema spent the 2024 campaign as head coach at Lenoir Rhyne, guiding the Bears to a 13-2-5 record, including an 8-0-3 mark in South Atlantic Conference play. The team advanced to the SAC championship game and reached the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Prior to her time with the Bears, Fennema enjoyed a successful three-year tenure as assistant coach at Columbus State. She helped lead the Cougars to three NCAA Tournament appearances, including a Regional Championship in 2022 when the team entered the tournament as the number one seed. That season, Fennema was part of the United Soccer Coaches Southeast Regional Coaching Staff of the Year as the team posted a 19-3-2 record. In addition, she helped guide Columbus State to two Peach Belt regular season championships and one conference tournament title. Under her leadership, 30 players earned all-conference honors, seven were named All-Americans, five received Scholar-All American recognition, and she coached the 2022 Elite 90 aw

Juan Basabe enters his second season as an assistant coach with NC State women’s soccer after being announced as part of head coach Gary Higgins’ staff in February 2025. During his first season in Raleigh, he helped the Wolfpack to a 5-9-4 campaign that saw the most wins in a season for the program since 2022. The team won four ACC contests, the most since 2021, while going on a a six-match unbeaten streak in league play, which tied the program record for most conference games without a loss. As a member of the coaching staff, Basabe works primarily with the goalkeepers, helping 2025 starter Olivia Pratapas to a pair of ACC Defensive Player of the Week honors, while also reaching a new career-best 16 saves in a single contest. Prior to joining the Wolfpack, Basabe spent the 2024 season as a volunteer assistant coach at his alma mater, Lenoir Rhyne. A native of Durango, Spain, Basabe enjoyed a standout playing career at Lenoir Rhyne, finishing with a record of 27-12-8. He recorded 18 shutouts and posted a career goals against average of 0.96. As a senior, he registered a 0.92 goals against average, which tied for third all time in program history for a single season. In 2023, Basabe was named to the United Soccer Coaches All-Region First Team. Over the course of his career, he earned multiple South Atlantic Conference Defensive Player of the Week honors and was also selected to the SAC All-Conference Second Team for the 2020–21 season. Basabe played for his hometown club, Cult

Katie Graham, Assistant Vice Chancellor & Senior Associate Athletic Director for Academics, joined ASPSA in 2004. Katie’s responsibilities include oversight of Case Academic Center and staff, which provide academic support services to all NC State Student Athletes. She also serves as the department’s liaison to the admissions office and leads the APR and GSR collection and reporting process, as well as the sports supervisor for Women’s Soccer and Women’s Tennis. Prior to her current role, she served as associate director and head football academic coordinator. Katie worked with football and women’s golf student-athletes for ten years; in that role she was responsible for coordinating academic support plans, monitoring NC State and NCAA eligibility, and assisting with recruiting and communicating with the coaching staff. She also helped to develop NC State’s Reconnect Program for former student-athletes who return to school to finish their undergraduate degree. Katie earned her bachelor's degree from NC State in business administration in 2003. While earning her undergraduate degree, she competed on the NC State swimming and diving team and served as team captain her senior season. Graham also received her Master's of Education in counseling from NC State in 2005. She is an active member of the Women Leaders in Sports organization, serves on multiple ACC committees, and is an active member of the National Association of Academic Advisors for Athletics (N4A), where she served a