Vassar College Athletics

Michael Warari finished his ninth season as the head coach of the Vassar field hockey team in 2021, propelling the squad to another successful season. The team finished 13-7 overall, winning the Liberty League title for the second time in program history to reach the NCAA Division III Tournament. Currently, Warari holds the most all-time coaching wins in program history at 105-44 with a .705 winning percentage. 

The 2019 season saw the Brewers return to the Liberty League Championship and name Vassar's second All-American, Cristina Lopez. Vassar finished at 15-4, with two players going all-region and four more awarded All-Liberty League honors. A notable win included a 1-0 victory over No. 10 Montclair State, and the Brewers finished the year ranked 16th in the national poll. So far, Warari has earned 92 wins as the head coach of the program, the most of any coach ever at Vassar while his winning percentage also ranks first at the college. The 2019 season also marked another dominant defensive year, with the Brewers leading the nation in save percentage (.895) and ranking third in defensive saves (27). 

In 2018, Vassar had a record-setting season with 18 wins, and the school’s first-ever Liberty League title. The Brewers also reached the NCAA Division III Tournament with the program's first-ever Sweet 16 appearance. 2018 marked the first season that the Brewers were nationally ranked and were voted as high as No. 5 in the NFHCA Coaches Poll. This season, Vassar had five players go All-Liberty League, as well Warari being selected to the North Atlantic Region Coaching Staff of the Year, Liberty League Coaching Staff of the Year, and ECAC Coaching Staff of the Year. In addition, Vassar received its first field hockey All-American in Monica Feeley. As a team, the Brewers were the league’s most offensive team, averaging 3.79 goals per game and totaling 190 points (72 goals, 46 assists) on the year. They were also the top defensive team in the league with a .37 goals against average. 

In 2016, Warari and his team posted 14 wins, including four wins over regionally-ranked opponents and three against teams ranked in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Top 20 poll. Furthermore, Vassar received votes in the NFHCA poll for four consecutive weeks and also hosted a Liberty League Tournament contest for the first-time ever at the College.  VC also won a program-best seven straight games mid-way through the year, and also broke school records in 2016 for shutouts, points, goals, and assists. For the season performance, Warari earned his second Liberty League Coach of the Year honors.  

In his third year at the helm, the Brewers continued their winnning ways, earning 12 victories which was the second-most in program history. Vassar also posted it's second-straight undefeated season on Weinberg Field, and went into the 2016 season having won 18 straight games at home. The Brewers defeated the highest ranked opponent in program history according to records available with a win over No. 5 William Smith Oct. 3, and VC also tied for the fewest losses in a season since 1979, when VC only played eight games.

Warari had another fantastic season as the head mentor of the Brewers in 2014, as he guided the team to another 11-win season, the first time in program history that a team has won 10 or more games in back-to-back seasons. Warari also saw the squad go undefeated at home with a 9-0 record in 2014, while receiving votes in the NFHCA National Poll for the first time ever. The Brewers also earned their second win over a ranked opponent in two season, knocking off No. 13 Rochester 2-1. 

Warari, who came to Vassar during the summer of 2013, wasted no time making a name for himself on the sidelines. During his first season with Vassar, Warari led the Brewers to a 11-win campaign, making the Liberty League Playoffs for the first time ever. For his efforts, Warari was named as 2013 Liberty League Coach of the Year.

Warari joined the Brewer athletics staff after serving one year at Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA, as an assistant coach under Caitlin Williams. At Dickinson, Warari helped teach and instruct the goalkeepers, as well as planning and organizing day-to-day practice schedules. He also assisted with recruiting, competition scouting and game preparation.

Before joining the Dickinson staff, Warari was an assistant at Division III powerhouse Messiah College in Grantham, PA, from 2008-2011. Coaching under legendary coach Jan Trapp, the all-time wins leader in Division III, Warari helped the Falcons to a combined 72-10 record, including 31-0 against conference foes. During that time Messiah appeared twice in the NCAA Division III Championship Game with Warari on the sidelines. While a member of the Falcon staff he focused on practice planning, individual skill set work and implantation, scouting and recruiting.

Additionally, Warari served as the head coach for the club field hockey team while at Messiah, where he led his squads to a 27-12-1 record over four years at the helm. He also served as an assistant basketball coach for the Falcons from 2006-2009.

Warari served a term as director of Key State Field Hockey, while also leading the Harrisburg site of the USAFH Futures Hockey program. Warari has attained his USAFH Level 1 Futures Coaching Certification, and his USAFH Level 2 High Performance Coaching Accreditation and Certification. Before his coaching career, Warari started for the Kenyan Junior National Field Hockey Team and was voted MVP for the Aga Khan Club Field Hockey Tournament in 1996. He then transitioned from field hockey to track, where he starred for the Cornerstone University track and field team from 1999-2002.

A 2002 graduate of Cornerstone with a degree in religion and business administration, Warari also earned his masters of divinity from Cornerstone in 2006.