Tari St. John, who spent two seasons on the Butler sidelines as an assistant coach, returned to Butler as the fourth head coach in the history of the women's soccer program April 7, 2006. St. John most recently served as an assistant coach at Purdue after spending the 2004 and 2005 seasons on the Butler staff.
"We are thrilled to welcome Tari back to Butler," said Jon Hind, Butler's associate athletic director in charge of women's soccer. "Her experience at Butler coupled with her success as a college player factored into our decision. Tari recruited many of our current players and has a working relationship with all of them. She has also put together an experienced staff, one of the most highly-decorated we've ever had at Butler."
Brett McIntosh, most recently the women's soccer assistant at IUPUI, will join St. John as a full-time assistant coach. Elise Edwards, who logged more minutes in goal than any other Stanford player in women's soccer history, will return for her third season as the team's goalkeeping coach.
Under St. John's tutelage, five Bulldogs earned postseason Horizon League accolades following the 2005 campaign. Meredith Buemi and Ashley Twehues were named to the league's first team, while Kate Lord and Angie Muir were tabbed to its second team. Muir and Jenny Southard were selected to the all-newcomer team. During the 2004 season, Julie Backscheider, Buemi and Lord earned All-Horizon League first-team honors, while Molly Callon posted All-Newcomer team accolades.
"I am so proud to return to Butler University, especially in this capacity," said St. John. "The administration has shown a great deal of support and faith in me, and I look forward to taking over where coach Sherwood left off. This is a great group of young ladies and the incoming recruiting class will only make us stronger. This is an exciting time for Butler soccer."
St. John brings NCAA Tournament experience and a resume as a four-year starter at Purdue. She was honored as an adidas Scholar All-American following the 2002 season, helping the Boilermakers to their first NCAA Tournament appearance. In addition to being a two-year captain, St. John also earned Academic All-Big Ten and Academic All-Region honors.
In her first two seasons at Purdue, St. John started all 37 of the team's matches and earned Offensive MVP honors at the inaugural Boilermaker Challenge Cup. A torn ACL cut short her 2000 season and she took a medical redshirt during the 2001 campaign. Helping to control the midfield for the Boilermakers, St. John finished her Purdue career with nine goals and nine assists. She appeared in 73 matches during her career, getting the starting nod on 71 occasions.
Originally from Brookfield, Wis., St. John was a member of eight Wisconsin club and two high school championship teams, earning first-team All-State honors three consecutive seasons. She has also played internationally with the Varsity Club in Christchurch, New Zealand. St. John currently holds a "C" license from the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) and received her National Diploma from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) during the summer of 2005.
St. John graduated from Purdue in 2003 with a degree in management.
Brett McIntosh makes the short commute from IUPUI to fill the vacant assistant coach position. He brings 12 years of coaching experience to Butler, including serving as the top aide at IUPUI during the 2005 season. He will be involved in all aspects of the Butler program, including on-field instruction, recruiting and team travel.