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Yamamoto, Eric

Eric Yamamoto '90
  • Sport: Soccer
  • Years Attended: 1986-1990
  • Member of the 1989 Co-National Championship Team
  • All American Goalkeeper
  • Inducted in 2003

Yamamoto was a four-year starter, athletic All-American, and 3x Academic All-American Honoree. He established Bronco records with 38 shutouts and a 0.63 goals-against average during his senior season. In 1989 he also led Santa Clara to a NCAA National co-Championship. He anchored an outstanding Santa Clara defense that allowed just 10 goals in 23 matches, posting a 20-0-3 record en route to finishing the year as No. 1. In the nation. Santa Clara's 1989 team is the last NCAA Division I Men's team to finish a season undefeated. After graduating, Yamamoto returned to Santa Clara, this time as a coach to the program he helped build. Yamamoto spent most of the 1990's as the goalkeepers coach for Santa Clara's men's and women's programs joining the coaching ranks in 1992. Since then he has been a coach here at SCU. In 2007 he was named National Assistant Coach of the Year by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.  At Santa Clara, Yamamoto has coached many standouts including 1992 West Coast Conference Defensive MVP Sue Wall, 1995 All-American men's goalkeeper and two-time MLS Goalkeeper of the Year Joe Cannon, 1998 WCC Defensive Player of the Year David Alexander, 2003 U-20 World Championship Goalkeeper of the Tournament and former LA Galaxy goalkeeper Steve Cronin, All-WCC netminder Rusty Johnson and the 2015 WCC Co-Goalkeeper of the Year Kendall McIntosh. He has also helped the formation of the WCC for women's soccer, Santa Clara featured the league's toughest defense in six of the first eight seasons, all with Yamamoto coaching the Bronco keepers. In 2001, he helped the women's squad capture its first National Championship, as the Broncos shutout perennial national powerhouse North Carolina, 1-0. Yamamoto has also worked with many of world's best goalkeepers as a member of the U.S. National Team coaching staff. He has also coached both boys and girls U.S. National Youth Teams and the U.S. Women's National Team.

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