Athletic Profile: Arron Lujan
New men’s soccer head coach Arron Lujan concluded a one-week preseason with an away scrimmage victory over Erie College and is ready to start his inaugural season.Lujan comes from Princeton University, having helped guide 13 Princeton players to receive All-Ivy honors, with four named to the All-Region team. Prior to working with the Princeton Tigers, he worked with the Virginia Wesleyan College program and led the team to a second-round appearance in the NCAA tournament. He was also a coach for the Virginia Olympic Development Program and Beach FC Hurricanes Under-17 boys’ premier team while coaching at the collegiate level. Lujan hopes to build a stronger soccer influence at Carnegie Mellon and continue to develop the team with the assistance of new assistant coach Michael Piranian.
With the season opener just around the corner, The Tartan was able to chat with Lujan about his expectations and goals for the season and thoughts on starting a new position at Carnegie Mellon.
Tartan: How has the preseason been going thus far?
Lujan: The preseason has been going great. The team is coming together well. We have a good mix of returning players and freshmen.
T: What are some of your expectations and goals for this season?
L: Our goal is to improve as a team every day. When we are working and competing at our highest level, we will achieve success.
T: Is there anything from your coaching jobs in the past that you hope you can bring to CMU?
L: I would say that I hope to bring a higher level of commitment and dedication to the CMU team.
T: Have you had a chance to explore the rest of CMU and the city of Pittsburgh? How do you like the area so far?
L: I haven’t had much time to explore Pittsburgh, but I’m sure I will get to that. My wife, on the other hand, has enjoyed exploring various parts of Pittsburgh. Since our arrival in Pittsburgh I have been incredibly busy with soccer camp and preseason. We have only been in Pittsburgh for three weeks, but so far it has been great.
T: What do you feel the assistant coach, Michael Piranian, will be able to bring to the table?
L: Mike has a lot of experience and success coaching and recruiting in the college game. His teams at Washington & Lee were competitive on the national level during his time there. He also proved that he is a great recruiter. We are very lucky to have him.
T: What is the game plan for the team in your first year here?
L: Our game plan for my first year is to improve on every aspect of our game from last year.
T: How do you feel the first-years will be able to contribute to this plan?
L: We have a very talented freshman recruiting class. I see them contributing to the team over the course of the year.
T: What are you the most excited about for your inaugural season at Carnegie Mellon?
L: I am most excited about competing in the UAA [University Athletic Association]. The UAA is one of the best conferences in the country and every game is a battle. I enjoy that aspect of the conference.
The men’s soccer team will host Dickinson College this Saturday at Gesling Stadium at 2 p.m. to mark Lujan’s first official match as the head coach of the program.