SUNY Cortland Athletics

Heather Brendel Evans was one of the nation’s top collegiate women’s soccer players during Cortland’s first three seasons as an intercollegiate varsity program. From 1978-80, Evans scored 64 goals — still the best in school history — and helped head coach Anna Boserup Rush Zado ’57 guide her teams to a combined 38-4-1 record.

Evans’ Red Dragon soccer career culminated in 1980 with a two-goal effort in a 5-1 win over UCLA in the first-ever Women’s Collegiate National Soccer Championship game. She was named the Most Valuable Offensive Player at the national championship tournament in Colorado Springs after scoring four goals in three games – one versus Colorado State in the quarterfinals and one against Harvard in the semifinals in addition to her two goals in the finals. Following the season, she was named a first-team All-American. In all, Evans earned three Cortland Red Letters and was a two-time team captain.

Evans is a Spencerport, N.Y., native and was inducted into the Spencerport Central Schools Athletic Hall of Fame in 1992. She earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education from Cortland in 1981 and a master’s degree from Cortland in 1983. She served as a graduate assistant women’s soccer coach for the Red Dragons from 1981-83 and was the women’s soccer head coach at Boston University from 1983-85.

Since 1985, Evans has taught physical education in the West Irondequoit (N.Y.) School District. During her teaching career, she has also coached soccer, volleyball and basketball at various levels.

In 1993, Evans received the West Irondequoit School District Excellence in Education Award, and in 2004 she was the recipient of the Central Western Zone of New York State Association of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance Elementary Teacher of the Year Award. In addition, she has served as co-coordinator of the Rogers School Outdoor Education program in West Irondequoit since 1998.

Evans has been involved with a variety of community service efforts in Spencerport, including serving as a Spencerport Brownie/Girl Scout Leader from 1996-2001, coaching the Spencerport Travel Soccer Club from 1998-2004, and helping organize many Spencerport High School class reunions.