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Now entering his eighth year as the head coach of the Toledo women's soccer program, TJ Buchholz has created a culture of success both on and off the field.
Success and winning are the norm for Buchholz, who has recorded a
230-179-28 record in
20 seasons as a head coach at the collegiate level. Buchholz’s achievements also include the distinction of taking teams to the national tournament at the NAIA, NCAA Division III, NCAA Division II, and NCAA Division I levels. During his tenure, Buchholz has coached seven MAC All-Freshman Team selections, 10 first- and second-team All-MAC honorees and one Freshman of the Year.
Highlighting Buchholz's first seven years at the Rocket helm was the 2017 campaign that saw Toledo capture its fifth Mid-American Conference title in program history. The Rockets posted a 12-8-3 overall record and a 6-3-2 league mark that season en route to their league-best fifth NCAA Championship appearance. In the conference tourney, Toledo knocked off Western Michigan, Ball State and Bowling Green by identical 2-1 scores to take the MAC title with the Rockets' final two victories coming in overtime.
The Rockets ended the 2021 season with its best record since 2017, finishing sixth in the MAC and reached the MAC Tournament for the first time since winning a conference championship in 2017. Toledo collected numerous postseason accolades on the field and in the classroom. Ellie Pool, McKenna Schultz and Olivia Dault earned Second Team All-MAC accolades, Dault and Schultz were placed on the MAC All-Freshman Team, and Schultz was named Freshman of the Year. Schultz was also recognized on the national level as the only MAC women's soccer player to be ranked among the Top 100 Freshmen by TopDrawSoccer. In the classroom, Toledo placed 12 student-athletes on the Academic All-MAC Team. Schultz’s honor marked the fifth straight year a Rocket had received MAC All-Freshman Team accolades.
The 2021 Rockets looked to be getting back into a routine despite having just finish their “fall 2020” season in the middle of April 2021. At the end of a seven-game 2020 season, Ellie Pool was selected to the All-MAC Freshman Team, scoring one goal and registering two assists. In the classroom, Toledo posted a 3.595 GPA for the spring semester and 10 Rockets were named Academic All-MAC.
In 2019, Stephanie Currie was selected to the All-MAC Freshman Team, Buchholz’s third consecutive season with a player landing on the All-Freshman Team, after compiling 15 points on six goals and three assists. The Rockets were also strong in the classroom once again, Ashton Cassel was recognized by CoSIDA to the All-District Second Team, while 16 Rockets were tabbed Academic All-MAC.
In the 2018 season, the Rockets saw two athletes earn all-conference honors. Hannah Scafaria was named to the All-MAC First Team after leading the league with 14 goals, with Ashton Cassel tabbed for a spot on the MAC All-Freshman squad. Scafaria later signed a professional contract and plays for Puerto Rock Sol FC.
Sophie Pohl earned tournament MVP honors after scoring both Rocket goals in the championship contest. She was joined on the all-tournament team by two-time All-MAC First-Team honoree Isa Echeverri, Chiara Paradiso and Regan Price. Paradiso and Scafaria were also named to the All-MAC Second Team squad that season, while Madison Perrin earned a spot on the MAC All-Freshman squad for her efforts between the pipes. Echeverri went on to compete for Colombia in the World Cup, played for Sevilla FC in Spain, and currently plays for CF Monterrey in Columbia.
In Buchholz's first season in 2015, the Rockets finished strong with a three-game winning streak that punched their ticket to the MAC Tournament. The rebuilding process of developing a MAC championship squad continued into 2016 and saw the Rockets finish just a point shy of qualifying for postseason play.
In addition to its success on the field, Buchholz’s program continues to uphold a high standard of academic excellence in the classroom. The Rockets set the all-time athletic department record with a 3.834 grade-point average in the spring 2020 semester. Toledo also landed a league-best and school-record 16 student-athletes on the Academic All-MAC team in 2019.
The Rockets have achieved a team GPA of better than 3.5 in every semester since Buchholz became head coach, including department-best GPAs of 3.679 in the fall of 2016 and 3.792 in the spring of 2019.
Prior to coming to Toledo, Buchholz served as the head coach at NCAA Division II Southwest Minnesota State for four seasons. inheriting a 1-11-4 squad from the 2010 season. He quickly laid the foundation during his first two seasons, producing a 5-10-1 record in 2011, the program’s highest victory total since 2004, and improving again in 2012, finishing with a 7-9-1 mark.
In 2013, SMSU reached new heights by earning a berth into the NCAA Championships for the first time in program history. The Mustangs earned two postseason victories along the way, defeating No. 1 seed Minnesota State to snap the Mavericks’ 36-match home winning streak and advance to the NCAA Sweet 16. SMSU wrapped up the year with a school-record 16 wins and was ranked No. 18 in the Top 25 poll. For the squad’s efforts on the field, Buchholz was tabbed the NSIC Coach of the Year.
SMSU had six players garner all-conference accolades in 2013. SMSU also had five players earn all-region laurels in 2013.
Buchholz posted a 38-32-5 record in four years at SMSU, including 29-24-5 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, and helped the Mustangs establish 17 school records during his stay.
Buchholz came to SMSU after spending one year (2010) as assistant women’s soccer coach at NCAA Division I California-Riverside.
Prior to his stint at UC-Riverside, Buchholz spent two seasons (2008-09) as the head women’s and men’s soccer coach at NCAA Division III Wartburg (Iowa) College, and seven seasons (2001-08) as head coach of the men’s program at Northwestern (Iowa) College. He also served one season as the Northwestern College head women’s soccer coach (2007).
During his two seasons as Wartburg’s women’s head coach, the team compiled a 31-5-4 overall record, won the program’s first-ever conference championship in 2008 and achieved the first-ever national ranking in 2009. He led the Wartburg men’s team to a pair of conference tournament championships, two NCAA Championship appearances and an overall ledger of 31-10-2. In the classroom, both programs received NSCAA Team Academic Awards in 2008 and 2009.
Prior to arriving at Wartburg, Buchholz was at the helm of the men’s soccer program at Northwestern College for seven seasons, recording a record of 68-59-5. During his tenure, the Red Raiders won one conference title, advanced to four NAIA region tournaments, won the 2007 championship and secured a spot in the NAIA National Tournament for the first time in program history. He was named the 2007 NAIA Region Coach of the Year.
Buchholz began his coaching career in 2000, spending one season as the assistant men’s coach at Northwestern College. He also served as the head women’s soccer coach at Northwestern during the 2007 season, leading the squad to a 7-10-1 ledger.
Born in Davenport, Iowa, Buchholz spent most of his childhood growing up in San Bernardino, Calif. He earned a B.A. in sociology from Northwestern (Iowa) College in 1999 and earned his master’s degree in sports management from California (Pa.) University in 2008. Buchholz and his wife, Candace, have three daughters, Season, Chloe, and Sophie.
