Emmaus girls soccer head coach Rob Rooney believes he's found the perfect time to step down, and that time is now. After 10 seasons, Rooney announced to his players and their parents at the recent team banquet that he had tendered his letter of resignation to athletic director Dennis Ramella. That letter of resignation also included a strong recommendation for his assistant coach and former Emmaus soccer standout Sarah Oswald to take over as the team's coach.

"The time was just right," said Rooney. "Obviously, nothing's set in stone, but I think that there's an overwhelmingly strong chance that the job will be Sarah's. I was a young coach once - a long time ago - and I was anxious to get my first opportunity, and this was an easy time for me to step away.

"Lizzie Waring and Shannon McGinnis play for my club team and they're graduating. Kristen Roth plays for me, too, but that's a process that could be never-ending if I kept saying 'well, let me wait until this next one graduates.' The time is just right; those two are graduating and I've kind of seen them through the end of their career and there is literally a coach-in-waiting."

Oswald has put in four seasons under Rooney and was twice named to the National Soccer Coaches of America's East Region All-America Team as a player. Oswald declined to comment on possibly taking over the head coaching job, but did have high praise for Rooney, who served as her coach as a player and as a coaching mentor.

"Rob is one of the most knowledgeable soccer coaches I've ever been around," she said. "I had the opportunity to learn from him as a player and now, in the last four years, had the opportunity to take what I know on the field and learn how to implement that into the coaching aspect. He's the only person I've coached under and it's been an honor and a privilege. Nobody has put as much effort into this program as he has."

Senior Shannon McGinnis, who was named to this year's NSCAA East Region All-America team, also credits Rooney with helping her develop as a player and also believes that Oswald would be the right choice for the job.

"It's been a great four years with Rooney," said McGinnis. "He's the best coach I've had. He's pushed me every single day and has been the one that's been able to get the best out of me out of all of the coaches that I've had. I'm really excited for coach Sarah to take over. I know she's ready and it's going to be a great experience for all of these girls next year."

Junior Kristen Roth will serve as the team's captain next season, but will continue to play for him on the club team coached by Rooney.

"I really enjoyed having him as a coach for the past three years," said Roth. "It was awesome and it was a good experience."

Rooney had hinted at exiting after Emmaus' season ended, but needed time to discuss the potential opening with Oswald before making his resignation official. Once Oswald told him that she felt she was ready to take over, Rooney never wavered on his decision to step down.

"This has been done for weeks," Rooney said. "I told Dennis six weeks ago and just said to him, 'hey, this is when I'm going to make an announcement,' and I gave him an official letter of resignation yesterday, so I had been resigned to it. Sarah and I met right at the end of the season and she said 'yeah, I think I'm ready to do this,' and my answer was 'okay, if you're ready to do this, then I'm going to step down.' For me, it was always just a matter of when."

Rooney led his teams to three District 11 titles and four appearances in the PIAA Tournament. He also collected six league titles and finishes with a record of 159-53-13 at Emmaus.