Pete Petersen joined Laker Nation in April of 2004 and is the longest active member of the Clayton State Athletic Department.
Clayton State Career Highlights
- 212 career wins (second all-time in the PBC)
- Nine PBC Championships
- PBC Coach of the Year (2005, 2007, 2010, 2019, 2022, 2023, 2024) (Most in PBC history)
- NSCAA Region Coach of the Year (2010)
- Coached 24 players that went onto various professional leagues
(Click Here for Full List)
- 6x Top-25 Final Poll Finisher (2004: 15; 2005: 12; 2007: 22; 2010: 5 ; 2023: 16; 2024: 5)
- Coached 18 of 21 All-American Selections
- Three College Sport Communicators (CSC) Academic All-America Selections (2019, 2020, 2022)
- Three United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-American Selection (2021, 2022)
- 78 All-Region Selections out of 85 coached
- Seven PBC Players of the Year (2007, 2009, 2010, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)
- Four PBC Freshmen of the Year (2007, 2008, 2010, 2017)
- One PBC Defensive Player of the Year (2023)
- Seven PBC Golden Boot Players (Player that scores the most goals in the PBC) (2007 ,2008 ,2015 ,2017 ,2019 , 2022, 2024)
- Three PBC Tournament MVPs (2005, 2007, 2023)
The most successful coach in Clayton State Athletics history, Petersen has represented the Lakers since 2004. During his run as leader of the men’s soccer program, he has compiled a 212-138-35 record. He also has compiled a record of 104-67-14 in the Peach Belt Conference including passing Van Taylor from Lander University for the the all-time lead in wins in PBC contests. He accomplished that feat when the Lakers defeated USC Aiken, 3-1, on October 19th, 2024.
Over the course of his career at Clayton State, Petersen has won nine PBC titles and a Southeast Region Championship that came in 2010 when his team reached the Elite Eight for the first time in program history. His team in 2024 would be the second team to reach the Elite Eight under the direction of coach Petersen.
The 2024 season proved to be a record-setting season for the Lakers as they capped off their season with a trip to the 2024 NCAA DII Men's Soccer Elite Eight. The season saw the Lakers finish with an overall record of 13-4-4 and went 8-1-1 in the PBC. Coach Petersen guided the Lakers to their second-straight PBC Regular Season Title, a runners-up finish in the Tournament, earned his seventh PBC Coach of the Year honor, and his team was awarded the PBC Sportsmanship Award. The Lakers made a great run in the NCAA Tournament defeating Converse in PKs in the Round of 32 and defeated No. 1 ranked Limestone in the Sweet 16 in overtime. Under the direction of Petersen, the Lakers saw three players selected as All-Americans; Alexis Iturria (1st USC, 3rd D2CCA), Alex Rodriguez (1st), and Mauricio Uribe (3rd). The Lakers also saw Iturria, Othmane Chagour, Rodriguez, and Uribe earn USC All-Region honors as well as D2CCA All-Region accolades. At the conference level, Rodriguez earned the Conference's Player of the Year and the Gold Ball winner and saw four other first-team All-PBC selections. This season also saw Isami Takeuchi and Camilo Velez earn CSC Academic All-District honors. In all, the Lakers scored 42 goals and conceded 21, which is the fewest since 2013.
The Lakers had a remarkable season as a team, in 2023, as they finished with a final record of 15-4-1. The Lakers set a new school record with winning eight matches in the Peach Belt Conference (PBC) This team earned their first Peach Belt Conference (PBC) Regular Season Championship since 2010 and earned their first Tournament Championship since 2007. Clayton State then earned a bid to the 2023 DII Tournament for the first time since 2010 and won the round of 64 match in penalty kicks over Lenoir-Rhyne before falling in the Round of 32 against Limestone. Coach Petersen's team reached new heights this season. Under the direction of Coach Petersen, Geo Rios and Alexis Iturria both earned United Soccer Coaches (USC) first-team All-America. The last time their were two Lakers that earned AA in the same season was Igor Lukic and Ryan Pugh in 2010. Both Rios and Iturria also earned D2CCA All-America accolades. Coach Petersen also mentored Christian Ransome and Wilfried Kamden who also earned USC All-Region recognition. Coach Petersen earned his sixth Coach of the Year honor while Rios earned his fifth All-Conference and his third straight Offensive Player of the Year honor. This season also saw Christian Ransome be selected as the Defensive Player of the Year, the first Laker to earn this accomplishment. The Lakers scored the second-most goals in school history (55) and conceded the fewest goals (23) since 2019.
The 2022 season was a special one for the Lakers as they boasted a 10-5-4 record and went 7-3-2 in the Peach Belt. Petersen mentored Geo Rios, who finished tied for second in the nation with 15 assists and was tied for first in the nation with .79 assists a match. Rios also was awarded the D2CCA Southeast Region Player of the Year. The Lakers finished the 2022 season falling in the PBC Semifinals to Flagler. Petersen also mentored Langston Blackstock, who was awarded the Gold Ball, which is given to the player who scored the most goals in the PBC. Blackstock also was a first-team All-Southeast Region selection in the D2CCA. Coach Petersen also saw three of his student-athletes get rewarded as CSC (formerly CoSIDA) academic All-District selection (Christian Ransome, Geo Rios, and Lewis Green). As more awards and honors come out, this year will be updated accordingly.
The 2021 season actually consisted of two seasons as the 2020 season was pushed to spring 2021. That season featured a 10-game, conference only slate. The Lakers finished that schedule with a 3-6 record. The fall 2021 season reverted back to a traditional season as the Lakers played conference and non-conference opponents. After the spring 2021 season, Mitro Turunen joined Neusesser in the Academic All-America club. The duo represents two of the seven selections.
In 2019, Clayton State put together a 9-8-2 record which saw them advance to the Peach Belt Conference Championship Game. The Lakers, after beating Lander 2-0 in the semifinals, played against the No. 1 team in the country, the Young Harris Mountain Lions. After falling behind 2-0, the Lakers answered and made it a 2-1 game, but were unable to get any closer as time ran down. Several players had breakout seasons as Geo Rios was named PBC Co-Player of the Year and earned a pair of All-Region honors. In addition, he was named a Scholar All-American, a first in program history. Theo Blachon, Alexis Iturria and Langston Blackstock were also named All-Region. The 2019 season would see a resurgent year for Petersen as the Lakers finished the season with a 14-6 record, tying a program record for the third most wins in a season. That season saw six All-Region selections, the most since 2010, and three All-American selections. The team also had 12 conference weekly honors, marking the most for a Clayton State men’s soccer team. Ryan King earned two of the All-American selections, two All-Region selections, was named PBC Player of the Year, first-team All-PBC and was awarded the league’s Gold Ball Award, which is given to the conference’s leading scorer. Petersen also earned recognition as he picked up his fourth Conference Coach of the Year Award. In addition to the on-the-field honors, the Lakers made it count in the classroom as they earned a 3.3 team GPA and saw Dusan Stankovic earn PBC Elite 15 honors. At the conclusion of the season, Tim Neusesser became the first men's soccer player to be named CoSIDA Academic All-America.
He led the team to the NCAA Tournament in three of his first four years (2004, 2005, 2007) before making a fourth trip in 2010. That year would be the most successful in program history as the Lakers went 19-4 overall and won three straight one goal games to earn the Southeast Regional championship and advance to the Elite Eight for the first time in team history. Following those wins over Lees-McRae (2-1), Flagler (1-0) and Anderson (1-0), it would take overtime for Rollins to slip past them by a 3-2 score in the national semifinals. That season saw three All-American selections, 10 All-Region selections, PBC Player of the Year, PBC Freshman of the Year, PBC Coach of the Year and NSCAA Region Coach of the Year.
Prior to Clayton State, Petersen served as an assistant coach at Davidson College in 1988. In 1989, he was the head coach at Spartanburg Methodist compiling a record of 79-28-6 and helped lead the Pioneers to win the 1994 NJCAA National Championship and was also voted NSCAA and NJCAA Coach of the Year. In 1999, Petersen then served as an assistant coach at Presbyterian College. In 2012, he was named to the Spartanburg Methodist Hall of Honor.
He also served as a South Carolina state Olympic Developmental Program Coach (ODP) and has coached at the youth levels with clubs such as St. Giles (S.C.), who is currently CESA; Concorde Fire, Norcross, Gwinnett Soccer Assoc., SSA, AFC Lightning; all in Georgia. Coach Petersen won two Youth State Championships (Norcross & AFC Lightning).
Following his National Championship at Spartanburg Methodist, Petersen spent eight seasons in the United Soccer Leagues (USL) where he worked with the South Carolina Shamrocks (1994-96) as Director of Operations and head coach, Jacksonville Cyclones (1997-98), as the General Manager and Head Coach, Raleigh Capital Express (1999), as the head coach and Atlanta Silverbacks (2000-01), as an assistant coach and then eventually the President.
On May 28, 1999, the Express started veteran U.S. Women’s National Team forward Wendy Gebauer against the Boston Bulldogs. Already a member of the first Women’s World Cup Championship Team in 1991, she became the first woman to suit up in a professional men’s soccer game in the United States.
Petersen earned a Bachelor of Arts in History from Presbyterian College where he was a four-year standout forward for the Blue Hose men’s soccer program. He scored 34 career goals including 13 in 1984 when he was named an NSCAA and NAIA All-America.
A long-standing member of the United Soccer Coaches, previously named the NSCAA, Petersen also holds a United State Soccer Federation (USSF) “A” License, USSF Goalkeeping "A" License and a United Soccer Coaches Premier certified coach. Additionally, these memberships and certifications have presented opportunities for him to coach 15 national team members (both the United States and other nations), 14 Major League Soccer players and five USL All-Stars. On the collegiate level, under the direction of Coach Petersen, has coached eight players that have represented their respective countries including the United States.
After completing his BA in History, at Presbyterian, Petersen was commissioned in the United States Army from 1985-88. During that time he served as a First Lieutenant and Airborne Ranger Platoon Leader in the 82
nd Airborne Division stationed in Ft. Bragg, North Carolina. Following his time in the Army, Petersen earned a Master degree in Sports Science from the United States Sports Academy, in Daphne, Ala. in 1989.
Petersen, whose hometown is Atlanta, grew up in Ghana and Nigeria, West Africa, from 1967-82. Petersen was a son of missionary parents. Petersen is married to Mona Banks and they have a daughter, Priscilla, who graduated from Kennesaw State University in 2024.
Petersen Year by Year Record
| Season |
Record |
Pct. |
Conf. Record |
Conf. Pct. |
Result |
| 2024! |
13-4-4 |
.619 |
8-1-1 |
.800 |
PBC Regular Season Championships
NCAA Elite Eight |
| 2023!* |
15-4-1 |
.750 |
8-2 |
.800 |
PBC Regular Season Champions
PBC Tournament Champions
NCAA DII Tournament Round of 32 |
2022
2021 |
10-5-4
9-8-2 |
.526
.526 |
7-3-2
7-4-1 |
.583
.625 |
PBC Semifinalst
PBC Final |
| 2020-21^ |
3-6 |
.333 |
3-6 |
.333 |
N/A |
| 2019 |
14-6 |
.700 |
5-2 |
.714 |
PBC Semifinals |
| 2018 |
3-11-3 |
.265 |
2-5 |
.286 |
PBC Semifinals |
| 2017 |
8-9-1 |
.472 |
2-4-1 |
.357 |
PBC Semifinals |
| 2016 |
4-13 |
.235 |
2-7 |
.222 |
N/A |
| 2015 |
8-7-1 |
.531 |
4-5 |
.444 |
PBC Quarterfinals |
| 2014 |
9-8-1 |
.528 |
4-5 |
.444 |
PBC Semifinals |
| 2013 |
10-5-2 |
.647 |
5-3-1 |
.611 |
PBC Quarterfinals |
| 2012 |
7-8-1 |
.469 |
3-5-1 |
.389 |
PBC Quarterfinals |
| 2011 |
10-8 |
.556 |
4-4 |
.500 |
PBC Semifinals |
2010!
|
19-4
|
.826
|
7-1
|
.875
|
PBC Semifinals
NCAA Region Champions
NCAA Elite Eight |
| 2009 |
11-6-1 |
.639 |
5-2-1 |
.688 |
PBC Semifinals |
| 2008 |
9-5-4 |
.611 |
3-0-3 |
.750 |
PBC Quarterfinals |
2007!*
|
14-4-2
|
.750
|
4-1-1
|
.750
|
PBC Champions
NCAA First Round |
| 2006! |
10-9 |
.526 |
5-2 |
.714 |
PBC Semifinals |
2005!*
|
13-4-4
|
.714
|
5-0-1
|
.917
|
PBC Champions
NCAA Second Round |
2004
|
12-4-4
|
.700
|
3-2-1
|
.583
|
PBC Semifinals
NCAA Second Round |
| Total |
212-138-35 (385 Matches) |
.550 |
104-67-17
(188 Matches) |
.553 |
21 Seasons |
^ - Fall 2020 season was postponed to Spring 2021 - COVID-19
! - Regular Season Champions
* - Tournament Champions
Updated 1.7.2025
