SENATOBIA – After seven seasons in charge of the Northwest women's soccer program, head coach Levi Nunnally has resigned from his head coaching duties, effective October 20.

Nunnally will stay and coach the Lady Rangers through the team's final fall scrimmage at Meridian on Friday, Oct. 16.

"Coaching soccer at the collegiate level has always been a dream job," Nunnally said. "Soccer has been a part of my life since I was a kid and I went from playing the sport to teaching and coaching the sport. It has been a blessing to coach at Northwest for the last seven seasons and I love all of the student-athletes that I have been able to coach at Northwest through the years. They all have a special place in my heart. I'm grateful for Dr. Gary Spears and the late Cameron Blount for hiring me and to our current administration of Brian Oakes, Dr. Matthew Domas and Dr. Michael Heindl, for giving me the opportunity to do what I love. The people at Northwest are amazing and it's hard to leave, but I am thankful for everything during these last seven years."

Nunnally posted a 41-57-11 overall record since taking over the program prior to the start of the 2013 season. Inside the MACJC North Division, Nunnally compiled a 16-33-7 mark and guided the Lady Rangers to three playoff appearances.

After replacing longtime coach Peter Jarjoura in 2013, Nunnally instantly made the Lady Rangers a competitor among the best of the division competition, turning the program around from a 5-8 overall record and fifth place finish in the division (2-6) to an 8-4-2 overall mark and a 4-2-2 division record, good enough for third place in the MACJC North and the program's first postseason bid since 2006.

Nunnally's squad began to really take shape in 2014, as the Lady Rangers posted a 10-5-4 overall record and advanced to the MACJC Semifinals after a 2-1 win against Meridian in the first round. The Lady Rangers' season came to an end after dropping a close 2-0 battle to Hinds.

Nunnally's 2014 team also made history by garnering the program's first ever national ranking, checking in at No. 18 following the conclusion of the regular season. 

Four players from the 2014 squad earned postseason accolades, led by all-Region 23 selections Breanna Kitchens and Holly Newman. Freshmen Abby Morales and Ashley Nelson also garnered All-MACJC recognition. Additionally, four members of that same squad - Morales, Kayla Boutwell, Tristan Kitchens and Kayleigh Sims - went on to sign at the four-year level, joining Freed-Hardeman University, Delta State and Millsaps College, respectively.

Although Northwest stumbled with five combined victories through the 2015-16 seasons, Nunnally's team rebounded for an 11-6 record in 2017, earning the most victories since the 2006 season. The Lady Rangers would go on to upset an unbeaten Pearl River squad, 1-0, on the road in the MACJC Quarterfinals, thanks to Lauren Snyder's golden goal in overtime. The victory marked Nunnally's second postseason win and sent Northwest to the MACJC Semifinals, where they fell 3-1 to 16th-ranked Holmes.

One of the most impressive feats from the 2017 campaign was that 10 of the Lady Rangers' 11 victories came via shutout, tying the most shutout wins since 2006 and falling one short of the program record of 11, set in 2004.

For his efforts, Nunnally was named the MACJC Women's Soccer Coach of the Year for the first time in his career. The Lady Rangers also earned two sportsmanship awards, the Tom Shepherd Award and the United Soccer Coaches' Team Ethics and Sportsmanship Award.

Nine players from the 2017 squad also went on to continue their careers at the four-year level, highlighted by goalkeeper and all-time saves leader Angel Hailey, who signed with ULM before eventually transferring to Division II program Montevallo. Tempest Shepherd also signed to the Division I level with Southern University, followed by Division II signee Madison Thrasher (Delta State) and four MUW standouts, Samantha Weinberg, Alayna Brechin, Mary Catherine Hutchens and Mackenzie Fennell.

Angelica Justice and Sierra Lasher also signed with four-year programs at Faulkner University and the University of the Ozarks, respectively.

More recently, Nunnally's Lady Rangers posted back-to-back fourth place finishes in the MACJC North and remained in the thick of the playoff hunt until the last week of the regular season. Despite the lack of postseason appearances, Northwest still yielded several honors and accolades with five players earning MACJC All-Star recognition and Nunnally being named the head coach of the North team in the 2018 MACJC-All-Star game.

Last season, Northwest posted a 3-12 record but lost five matches by two goals or less. Midfielder Katelyn Rock was named All-MACJC and two players, Cheyenne Smith and Shelbi Box, signed with Christian Brothers and MUW, respectively.

Overall, 18 players went on to sign to the four-year level under Nunnally's guidance, compared to only three in program history before his arrival.

Prior to Northwest, Nunnally spent the 2008-12 seasons as the women's assistant coach at Young Harris College (Ga.), where the Mountain Lions went a combined 52-30-5 and made the playoffs twice before transitioning from junior college to a four-year college.

While at YHC, Nunnally had 14 former players named to All-Region squads, two JUCO All-Americans and also had three former players go on to play semi-pro soccer for the Dayton Dutch Lions and Knoxville Lady Force.

Prior to YHC, he coached at top quality soccer camps in Colorado and Connecticut for No.1 Soccer camps and also coached summer camps in Mobile and Memphis. His coaching career began in 2007 with the McMinn United Futbol Club where he coached the U9 Girls/Boys and U10 Girls/Boys teams.  
 

Nunnally played college soccer at Itawamba where he made the NJCAA All-Region 23 Team and was named team captain his sophomore year. He continued his soccer career at Tennessee Wesleyan where the Bulldogs won the 2001 Appalachian Athletic Conference and Region Championship to qualify for the NAIA National Tournament. He was a team captain his senior year, served as a graduate assistant for both the men's and women's teams in 2003-04.

"Coach Nunnally made a significant impact on our women's soccer program over the last seven years," said Northwest Director of Athletics Brian Oakes. "We are thankful for the hard work and tremendous dedication he devoted into making the Northwest women's soccer program competitive amongst MACCC competition. We wish him all the best in his future endeavors."

Northwest men's soccer coach Mark Hogan will step in as the women's head coach on an interim basis. A search for Nunnally's permanent replacement will begin soon.