Abbey Barnum - Women's Soccer Coach

Abbey Barnum

Title:
Assistant Coach
Email:
abbey.barnum@usm.edu
Phone:
266-6584

Barnum comes to Southern Miss after spending the 2018 season as an assistant coach at Rhodes College (Memphis, Tenn.). During her time at Rhodes College, Barnum helped the women's soccer program to a 9-5-3 record, improving from the previous season. She also helped the Lynx to the Southern Athletic Association Women's Soccer Final and a second place finish in the league for the 2018 season. Three athletes that Barnum coached at Rhodes College earned United Soccer Coaches All-South Atlantic Region honors while six earned All-SAA honors.

Prior to joining the coaching staff at Rhodes College, Barnum served as an assistant coach for the University of the Southwest (Hobbs, N.M.) women's soccer program. Barnum helped the program achieve a 13-3 record during the 2017 season, marking the second-best overall record in the program's history and the best conference record in the program's history. With Barnum's coaching assistance, the Mustangs received regional rankings by the NAIA and outscored opponents, 69-4. While coaching at University of the Southwest, Barnum also honed her recruiting skills as she signed seven student-athletes as a first-year college coach.

The Spring, Texas native began her coaching career in 2016 when she served as a coach for the Liverpool Football Club International Academy America in Wichita Falls, Texas. The time that Barnum spent with the club developing youth players allowed her to create strong recruiting ties in the state of Texas which have proven to be a valuable asset over the course of her collegiate coaching career.

Before breaking into the coaching industry, Barnum enjoyed a successful playing career at Midwestern State University (Wichita Falls, Texas) where she was a member of the Mustang's 2013 and 2016 Women's Soccer Lone Star Conference Championship teams.

Barnum was successful in the classroom as well as she held an academic merit scholarship over the course of her four years at Midwestern State University.

Barnum also has a passion for serving others and her community as she filled the role of community service liaison for the University of the Southwest Athletic Department. In addition, Barnum has spent time serving as a volunteer with various organizations including, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, Special Olympics, St. Jude Memphis Marathon and Girls Summit just to name a few.

Barnum earned her Bachelor's degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Marketing from Midwestern State University in 2017 and then went on to earn her Master's degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Sport Management from University of the Southwest in 2018.

Abbey Barnum on joining the Southern Miss coaching staff
"I am incredibly grateful for this amazing opportunity to coach at Southern Miss. I am excited to be a part of the soccer family and a part of helping the program achieve its goals. I look forward to this upcoming season and working with the entire soccer program!"

Southern Miss head women's soccer coach Mohammed El-Zare on the hiring of Barnum
"I am very excited with the arrival of Abbey Barnum as our new assistant coach. Abbey brings in a wealth of experience as a player and has a lot of ties to Texas which is one of the areas that we heavily recruit from. She has also shown a lot of leadership in her previous positions that she has held over the past three years. Abbey gained the experience of being the head coach of an NAIA program for almost six months and ultimately turned down the head coaching position after it was offered to her in order to accept an assistant coaching position at Rhodes College because she is a growth learner. She wants to learn and she felt that coming to Southern Miss as an assistant coach would be another great learning experience for her. Abbey has a great eye for the game and she understands our attacking brand of soccer so she is a good fit for our program. I believe that Abbey will be one of the top up and coming coaches within the next five years and we are excited about all of the qualities that she will bring to our program."

Eastern New Mexico University women's soccer coach Josh Smith on Barnum
"Abbey will be a fantastic addition to the Southern Miss coaching staff and program. She is a smart, up and coming coach with a bright future. Not only will she make an impact on the field, she will build great relationships with the student-athletes and will motivate them to achieve their goals! Congrats to Southern Miss and Coach El-Zare on a great hire."

Fort Lewis College head women's soccer coach Damian Clarke on Barnum
"I think Abbey is a brave person! She was willing to maximize her talent and fitness as a player, and I am excited to see that confidence and mindset carry over into her coaching. You do not always get to see people grow their confidence as a coach, it is not an easy thing to learn. She is one of the few that really made a full effort. She finished her career as a conference champion at Midwestern State, and finished chasing her dreams in the NCAA Tournament."