INDIANAPOLIS – IU Indianapolis head women's soccer coach Chris Johnson has announced his retirement from coaching and plans to pursue other opportunities. Johnson, an Indianapolis-native, coached the program the past 22 seasons, racking up 160 wins on the sidelines and 241 total wins spanning time at IU Indianapolis and UIndy.

"We're incredibly grateful for Chris and the entire Johnson family for their tireless commitment to the women's soccer program," Director of Athletics Luke Bosso said. "He's built an incredibly recognizable and competitive program that's known for doing things the right way. His student-athletes represent the university at the highest level and Chris has taken incredible pride in building and sustaining the program the right way. We'll miss having him on the sidelines but are excited to see what's next for him."

"I would like to thank my wife, Andrea, for allowing me to pursue my dream of becoming a Division I coach and supporting me all these years. She spent a lot of weekends chasing our kids and managing the house so I could build this program. Without Andrea, I would not be where I am today," Johnson said. "I also want to thank my parents, John and Dee, any my sister Angie for supporting me all of these years. They were regular attendees at our home games and made many away games too.

"I will forever by grateful to Mike Moore and Denise O'Grady for giving me the opportunity to lead the women's soccer program at IUPUI 22 years ago. I have been incredibly blessed during my coaching career to have been surrounded by good players and coaches who have helped build the program into what it is today. Without the help of Stacy Pease, Alison Conquest and Rachel Fulkerson, we would not have been able to accomplish as much as we have. I want to thank the three of them, as well as the other coaches who helped me when the position was part-time pay, but they gave full-time effort."

Johnson, a four-time league Coach of the Year honoree, guided the Jaguars to two NCAA Tournament berths (2009, 2017), including the department's first Horizon League title in any sport in Fall 2017. His teams collected double-digit wins six times, including a program record 17 wins during the 2009 season. That team had the nation's longest winning streak during that season, reeling off a program record 12 straight victories at one point.

All total, he coached six All-Region performers in 22 seasons with the program, three league Players of the Year and aided several former players to continue playing professionally after graduation. Academically, his program has been elite, earning accolades from United Soccer Coaches on an annual basis and ranking among the nation's top 25 grade point averages on multiple occasions. His program has also fared incredibly well in both the NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) and Graduation Success Rate (GSR).

"I want to thank all of the players who picked our program and their parents for entrusting us with their daughters," Johnson said. "It was the players and the positive relationships we had that made the job never really feel like a job. I have so many great memories from my time as the coach of the IUPUI women's soccer program and am honored to have been here for the last 22 seasons."

When Johnson took over, the Jaguars had won just 25 matches in the program's first five seasons. In just his second season, Johnson led the program to its first-ever winning record in 2004, amassing 10 victories.

The IU Indy Athletics Department will conduct a national search, effective immediately. Those interested in the position can send materials to Grant Gilbert at grgilber@iu.edu.