The 2011 season will be Gary Crompton’s fourth as the head men’s soccer coach at Bentley University. 

“Bentley University is extremely fortunate to have selected someone with his background as a player and as a coach at a very successful Division I academic institution,” said athletics director Bob DeFelice upon Crompton’s hiring.

Crompton led Bentley to one of the most successful seasons in program history in 2010. He guided the Falcons to their first appearance in the Northeast-10 championship game since 1994, earning wins over New Haven and Southern Connecticut in the playoffs before ultimately falling to No. 1 Franklin Pierce 1-0 in the finals.

Overall, Bentley finished 11-3-6, its most wins since 2003, and tied for third place in the NE-10, its highest finish in the league since 1999. They finished the season ranked sixth in the East Region and narrowly missed getting selected to the NCAA Tournament.

Bentley has made the Northeast-10 playoffs in each of his first three seasons, the first time they have made three straight postseason appearances since 1998-2000. The Falcons qualified for the playoffs in his first two seasons with dramatic wins on the final day of the regular season over Saint Michael’s and Saint Anselm respectively.

The Philadelphia native has compiled a 25-22-10 record at Bentley. His players have earned eight All-Conference selections, six All-Academic nods and three have been named All-Rookie.

Hired in July of 2008, Crompton, 40, previously spent 14 years as an assistant coach at Harvard University, spearheading the program’s recruiting and scheduling efforts. During his tenure, the Crimson made five appearances in the NCAA Tournament (1994, 1996, 2001, 2006, 2007) and captured three Ivy League championships (1994 co-champions, 1996, 2006).

In addition to those successes, four of his Crimson players earned All-America honors and 23 were first-team All-Ivy League selections during his tenure.

Before stepping into the coaching ranks, Crompton was a standout defender at the University of Maine. He was a two-year captain and a Scholar All-America for the Black Bears.

Crompton also played professionally for nine years, having played in the United Soccer League with the Cape Cod Crusaders, Worcester Wildfire, Boston Bulldogs and Connecticut Wolves. He was named a USL All-Star with the Crusaders in 1995 and with the Wildfire in 1997.

In addition to his coaching career at the collegiate level, Crompton has over a decade of experience working with young players around the world. In 1998, he traveled to South America, observing player development with Universidad de Catolica in Santiago, Chile. Crompton was also head coach of FC Greater Boston Bolts’ U-17 team from 2002 to 2006.

He is currently head coach of the Bolts’ U-16 team that competes in the United States Soccer Federation Development Academy, a nationwide program of select youth clubs.

Crompton graduated magna cum laude from Maine in 1992 with a double degree in sociology and psychology. In the spring of 2009, he earned his master’s degree in psychology from Harvard. He currently resides in the greater Boston area.