Layton Shoemaker, Messiah College
Men’s Soccer Coach – 1974-1997
Layton Shoemaker is a former director of athletics and head men’s soccer coach at Messiah. He was the fifth head coach of the men’s soccer program when he was appointed to the position in 1974. Shoemaker coached for 23 years (until 1997) and directed the Falcons to a 316-96-27 overall record for a .751 winning percentage. His teams had eight NCAA tournament berths and two NCAA Division III national semifinal appearances in 1986 and 1988. In 1986, Shoemaker was honored as the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) National Coach of the Year in NCAA Men’s Division III—the first such honor for a Messiah coach. Also during his coaching tenure, Shoemaker assumed roles as a faculty member in the Health, Physical Education and Recreation Department and eventually became the chair of the department. He was also the longest tenured director of athletics, serving from the 1970s to the mid-1990s. Shoemaker was inducted into the Messiah Athletics Hall of Fame in 2001.
Layton Shoemaker's Messiah Hall of Fame Page