CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- University of Northern Iowa Director of Athletics Megan Franklin on Monday afternoon announced the hiring of Alex Place Thomas as the Panthers' new women's soccer coach. She had served as UNI's interim head coach during the 2025 season and becomes the seventh full-time head coach in program history.
We are thrilled to welcome Alex Place Thomas as the next head coach for UNI women's soccer, said Franklin. Her competitive spirit, passion for the women to thrive and develop in their athletic and academic pursuits, along with her love for the University of Northern Iowa positions the program for success in a dynamic league such as that in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC).
During the 2025 season, Place Thomas introduced a high-paced offense to the Panther team, helping UNI record a top-ten season in program history in goals scored (22), points (61) and goals per game (1.3). UNI ranked second in the MVC in corner kicks per game (5.3), fourth in scoring offense (1.3) and fourth in both shot attempts (13.7) and shots on goal (6.4) per game. Additionally, Olivia Knoepfle, Macy Smith and Sophia Balistreri all earned Third Team All-MVC honors.
I'm incredibly honored and energized to officially lead this program and this remarkable group of student-athletes, said Place Thomas. My passion lies in the process — the daily commitment, the belief and the pursuit of excellence that it takes to achieve something great. My coaching philosophy is built on relationships, honest and critical conversations and coaching with love. I believe those connections, combined with hard work and purpose, are what drive true success. Together, we're going to create a relentless, winning identity and take UNI women's soccer to heights it has never reached before!
In addition to her 2025 interim head coaching stint at UNI, Place Thomas also coached at the collegiate level as part of the Wartburg women's soccer staff during the 2024 season. While with the Knights, she collaborated on recruiting efforts, led social media campaigns and managed recruiting databases. On the field, she specialized in coaching the team's defensive strategies and techniques. The Knights went 10-7-3 in 2024 with Place Thomas on staff, finishing third in the American Rivers Conference (ARC) and reaching the conference tournament semifinals.
Place Thomas' first collegiate coaching opportunity came at Grinnell College from 2019 to 2021. The Pioneers posted a 7-7-3 record in 2019 with Valencia Alvarez, Lauren Edwards and Simo Bambi earning All-Midwest Conference honors.
Prior to joining the Panther staff, the Denver, Iowa native has spent eight years as the head girls soccer coach at Cedar Falls High School (2018-25). The Tigers won 56 matches under Place Thomas, notching five seasons with ten or more wins along with three Iowa Class 3A District Tournament Championship match appearances in the last five seasons (2021, 2022, 2025). A two-time Mississippi Valley Conference (MVC) Coach of the Year (2021, 2022) and the 2022 Iowa Class 3A District East Coach of the Year, she helped Cedar Falls finish first in the MVC's Valley Division in back-to-back seasons in 2024 and 2025 for the first time in school history, posting an unbeaten conference record this spring. The Tigers also earned consecutive MVC Player of the Year winners in each of the previous two seasons, including current Panther Ella Ubben in 2024.
From 2018 to 2024, Place Thomas served as a head coach of the Iowa Rush Soccer Club in Waverly, helping coach young soccer players from ages three through 18 years by leading creative and effective practice plans to improve player and team development. In the role she also administered and organized road games and tournaments across the Midwest.
Over a seven year span, Place Thomas also worked at the Berkshire Soccer Academy for Girls in Massachusetts, a premier summer soccer camp where she coached girls aged nine to 18 years alongside professionals from the U.S. women's national team, other professional players and college coaches from around the country. She also spent one season as a girls high school assistant soccer coach at Cedar Rapids Xavier in the spring of 2017.
Place Thomas played her collegiate soccer career at Cornell College in Mount Vernon (2013-16) and was a four-year starting defender/midfielder and two-year team captain, scoring a total of five goals with seven assists during her career while also serving as a Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) team representative. She earned her Bachelor's of Arts degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Cornell in 2017, and would spend two years as a graduate student and teaching assistant at UNI before graduating with a Master's of Science degree in Biology in 2019.
Place Thomas and her husband John currently reside in Cedar Falls with their daughter, Linnlee.
PLACE THOMAS' COACHING CAREER
- 2025-present: University of Northern Iowa (Head Women's Coach)
- 2025: University of Northern Iowa (Interim Head Women's Coach)
- 2024: Wartburg College (Assistant Women's Coach)
- 2019-21: Grinnell College (Assistant Women's Coach)
- 2018-25: Cedar Falls High School (Head Girls Coach)
- 2018-24: Iowa Rush Soccer Club (Head Coach)
- 2017: Cedar Rapids Xavier High School (Assistant Girls Coach)
- 2015-23: Berkshire Soccer Academy For Girls (Master Coach)
UNI WOMEN'S SOCCER HEAD COACHING HISTORY
- Linda Whitehead, 2000-04
- Kathy Kakoyianni-Bering, 2005-07
- Jen Plante, 2008
- James Price, 2009-15
- Chris Logan, 2016
- Bruce Erickson, 2017-24
- Alex Place Thomas, 2025-Present
UNI women's soccer action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Panther Soccer), X (@UNI_Soccer) and on Instagram (@unipanthersoccer). Schedule information and the roster, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.