Twila Argo Kilgore (née Kaufman; born January 18, 1980) is an American soccer coach and former player.[3] She was appointed as assistant coach for the United States women's national team, initially under Vlatko Andonovski, and later got promoted as interim head coach after the resignation of Andonovski.[4][3]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Twila Argo Kilgore | ||
| Birth name | Twila Argo Kaufman[1] | ||
| Date of birth | January 18, 1980[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Downey, California, U.S.[2] | ||
| Height | 5 ft 1 in (1.55 m)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | |||
| Youth career | |||
| –1998 | Harvard-Westlake Wolverines | ||
| Las Virgenes Blazers | |||
| So Cal Blues | |||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1998–2001 | Arizona Wildcats | 74 | (7) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| Arizona Heatwave | |||
| Managerial career | |||
| 2004 | Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (vol. asst.) | ||
| 2004–2013 | Pepperdine Waves (assistant) | ||
| 2009 | Los Angeles Legends | ||
| 2014–2019 | UC Davis Aggies | ||
| 2019–2022 | Houston Dash (assistant) | ||
| 2019 | United States U19 | ||
| 2022–2024 | United States (assistant) | ||
| 2022 | United States U23 | ||
| 2023–2024 | United States (interim) | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Playing career
editKilgore was born in Downey, California to Patricia Kaufman.[2] In her youth, she played for the club side Las Virgenes Blazers,[5] before later joining the Southern California Blues, with whom she won two state titles. In high school, she played soccer at Harvard-Westlake School, where she earned first team All-CIF honors during her senior year. In college, Kilgore played four years with the Arizona Wildcats from 1998 to 2001. She made 74 appearances during her career, scoring seven goals and recording three assists.[1][6] After college, Kilgore joined the Arizona Heatwave and played in the USL W-League before becoming a coach.[7]
Coaching career
editIn 2004, Kilgore joined the Pepperdine University coaching staff as an assistant coach and associate coach. During her time at Pepperdine, Kilgore earned her USSF National "A" license. After spending 10 years with Pepperdine University, Kilgore took over as the head coach for the University of California, Davis women's team.[7]
In 2019, Kilgore joined the Houston Dash as an assistant coach.[8] During her time with the Houston Dash, Kilgore also served as a member of U.S. Soccer coaching staff, taking the United States U-19 Women's National Team (USWNT U-19) to the La Manga Tournament in 2020.[9]
While serving as a member of the Houston Dash technical staff, Kilgore became the first American-born woman to earn the U.S. Soccer's top-level Pro License.[4] After earning this license, Kilgore was named to lead the January 2022 USWNT U-23 camp.[10] Kilgore was named as an assistant coach for the senior USWNT in February 2022.[11]
On August 17, 2023, Kilgore was named the interim head coach for the senior USWNT following the resignation of Vlatko Andonovski, under whom Kilgore served as the assistant coach. Kilgore has served as assistant coach since the arrival of permanent head coach Emma Hayes in May 2024.[12] Kilgore coached the team to victories during both the 2024 CONCACAF W Gold Cup and the 2024 SheBelieves Cup. Upon the arrival of Hayes, Kilgore resumed her role as an assistant coach to help the USWNT win Gold at the 2024 Summer Olympics. On September 24, 2024, U.S. Soccer announced the departure of Kilgore from the national coaching team, stating she would pursue other coaching opportunities.[13]
Personal life
editKilgore graduated from the University of Arizona in 2003 with a Bachelor of Arts in secondary education.[7] She later earned a master's degree in coaching and athletic administration from Concordia University Irvine in 2009.[2]
She married Jeremiah Kilgore in September 2021.[2]
Coaching statistics
edit- As of April 6, 2024
| Team | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | Win % | |||
| Los Angeles Legends | 2009 | 2009 | 12 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 16.67 |
| UC Davis Aggies | 2014 | 2019 | 200 | 108 | 29 | 63 | 54.00 |
| United States U-19 | March 2020 | March 2020 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 66.67 |
| United States | August 17, 2023 | May 18, 2024 | 13 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 76.92 |
| Career totals | 228 | 122 | 34 | 72 | 53.51 | ||
Managerial honors
editUnited States Women
editAs assistant coach of women's senior national team
- CONCACAF W Championship: 2022
- SheBelieves Cup: 2023
- Summer Olympic Games Gold Medal: 2024
As Interim coach of women's senior national team
References
edit- ^ a b c d "Player Bio: Twila Kaufman". Arizona Wildcats. 2001. Archived from the original on August 18, 2023. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
- ^ a b c d "2023 USWNT Coaching Staff: Twila Kilgore". 2023 U.S. Women's National Team Media Guide (PDF). Chicago: United States Soccer Federation. 2023. p. 13. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 18, 2023. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
- ^ a b Linehan, Meg. "USWNT coach Vlatko Andonovski resigns". The Athletic. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
- ^ a b "Coaching trailblazer Twila Kilgore talks about her journey from the Houston Dash to the USWNT". TheStriker.com. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
- ^ "Twila Kaufman". Pepperdine Waves. Archived from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
- ^ "2001 Final Statistics and Season Results". 2002 Arizona Soccer (PDF). Tucson, Arizona: Arizona Wildcats. 2002. p. 23. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 18, 2023. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
- ^ a b c "Twila Kaufman". www.UCDavisAggies.com. UC Davis. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
- ^ "Houston Dash adds Twila Kaufman to technical staff". www.HoustonDynamoFC.com. Houston Dash. August 1, 2019. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
- ^ "U-19 USWNT WILL PLAY FIRST THREE MATCHES OF 2020 IN LA MANGA, SPAIN". www.USSoccer.com. United States Soccer Federation. February 24, 2020. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
- ^ "Dash Assistant Coach Twila Kilgore (Kaufman) Will Run Upcoming U.S. Under-23 Women's Youth National Team Training Camp". www.HoustonDynamoFC.com. Houston Dash. January 13, 2023. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
- ^ "TWILA KILGORE NAMED AS AN ASSISTANT COACH FOR THE U.S. WOMEN'S NATIONAL TEAM". www.USSoccer.com. United States Soccer Federation. February 11, 2021. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
- ^ Baxer, Kevin (August 17, 2023). "Twila Kilgore named interim U.S. women's soccer coach as search for replacement begins". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
- ^ "Twila Kilgore Departs U.S. Women's National Team Coaching Staff to Pursue Other Coaching Opportunities". U.S. Soccer. September 24, 2024. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
- ^ "2024 Shebelieves Cup final USWNT vs Canada result". U.S. Soccer. Retrieved April 9, 2024.