There are those that, in the instant they strike in the last period on the final page of a grand work – a thesis, for example, or a paper written in haste the night before the deadline – wash their hands from the keyboard and immediately push away from their desk.

These people are generally known as
students.

There are others who are not so easily
satiated. That sit down to toil and write until they bleed, and view the final
page a bit differently. Not as an end, but as a beginning. And when they’ve
reached it, they turn the page to start anew.

We call them authors.

Both groups have been known to pen
masterpieces, but it’s the latter group that is typified by those that grace
work after work with a Midas touch. It’s the latter group where former Grand
Valley State women’s soccer coach Dave Dilanni belongs.

“Eventually you want to have tradition,
a culture of success breading success, but to do that, you have to start on
page one,” Dilanni said. “It’s a process.”

Many fledgling authors are instructed
to start by writing what they know, and what Dilanni knows is soccer and
winning. What he knows, he knows well.

So, after a successful seven-year stint
as head coach of the Jackson Lumen Christi High School women’s soccer team, and
three years as an assistant at Hillsdale College, Dilanni made his collegiate
head coach debut at Division II GVSU back in 2003, and embarked upon penning a
decade-long ‘New York Times Best Seller’ tenure.

“There have always been wonderful
people that are passionate about the team and the school and the program
everywhere I’ve gone,” Dilanni said. “With that support – and I’m grateful to
have had it – the expectation is always to win, and that’s something I think
about every day I’ve been on the job.”

DiIanni coached 21 All-Americans and
accrued a 221-18-18 record during the 11-year span at GVSU. His .895 winning
percentage is the highest of any coach in any sport in the Division II ranks,
and the third-highest amongst all coaches in any division.

He collected nine consecutive GLIAC
titles, 11-straight NCAA Tournament berths, seven Final Four appearances in the
last eight seasons and three NCAA Division II national championships –
including one in 2013, his final season at the helm.

A title – a third in five seasons –
gleaned from a season that led with the second-longest shutout streak in
Division II history, and saw the Lakers score the second-most goals in program
history (88), while also matching a program-high 21 shutouts.

Bolstered by five All-Americans, the
2013 team finished 24-0-1, tying the mark for most single-season victories in
school history, and claimed both GLIAC regular season and tournament titles.
For his efforts, DiIanni was named the National Soccer Coaches Association of
America (NSCAA) Coach of the Year for a third time, and atop the peak,
recognized the time to mark an ending was near.

It was time for a new project and, on
May 17, the page turned. Dilanni was hired on as the fifth head coach in the
University of Iowa women’s soccer history, and had made the move to Iowa City
by June 1.

“I think my family and I will always
have a soft place in our hearts for GVSU, but I was excited to challenge myself
professionally by becoming the head coach of Iowa,” DiIanni said. “The memories
stay and hopefully the successes will too, but the right kind of change can be
good.”

Few have received more acclaim for
their debuts than DiIanni did in 2003 when he directed the GVSU women’s soccer
program to a then-school best record of 17-2-2 and its first-ever NCAA
Tournament berth, but both he and successor at GVSU, Jeff Hosler, have given
their inaugural seasons with new teams their best go.

Despite jumping up a division, taking
over without the benefit of spring play and losing five different players to
ACL injuries suffered throughout the season, DiIanni helped escort Iowa to a
14-7-1 (7-6-1 in the Big 10) record after losing to Wisconsin 1-0 in
double-overtime in the championship game of the 2014 Big 10 Tournament.

“The transition has been a whirlwind,
but considering some of the adversity we were faced with, I was really very
happy with how the season ended up,” DiIanni said. “The level of talent across
the board in the Big 10 is so high, and the margin for error so low that this
past season, about 80 percent of games played inter-conference were decided by
a goal or ended in a tie.

“That’s completely different than what
we were used to at GVSU. It’s less about the technical ability of the players
than it is about the tactical skills on this level, and I’ve had to adjust in
some ways.”

Despite jumping up a division, and deep
cleats to fill, Hosler has also adjusted amicably. His 19-2-1 record (10-1-1
GLIAC) and .886 win percentage fall perhaps a notch shy of the bar DiIanni set,
although you wouldn’t notice from a glance.

Hosler – younger and slightly more
offensively inclined than DiIanni – will continue to write his story his own
way in his own voice, although the arch he’s outlined so far closely resembles
his predecessor’s story that he was bequeathed to continue.

“Tim Selgo is one of the best athletic
directors in the business because he knows what he’s looking for and then goes
out and gets it,” DiIanni said. “I’ve always had respect for Jeff as a peer and
it’s exciting to see the success he’s had already at GVSU.

“I know both Jeff and the girls in the
program had massive expectations for the season, most of which were
self-imposed, and I’m so proud of the job that they’ve done. I don’t always get
to follow them on as much as I’d like with how busy I’ve been, but I always
keep one eye on them from Iowa City.

GVSU will continue its season with a
match Friday against No. 3 Wisconsin-Parkside with a spot in the quarterfinals
of the NCAA Tournament on the line. Anything less than a championship might be
seen as a disappointment.

DiIanni will have to wait until next
year to chase a championship, and will have to do while combatting more
adversity – Iowa graduates nine seniors from the team after this year – but
understands that as daunting as a blank page can be, fresh starts also allow
for new opportunities.

It took DiIanni three seasons to win
his first conference championship at GVSU, and, like writing a work worth
reading, building a soccer program takes time. For both he and Hosler, there
are plenty of blank pages ahead left to fill.

Keep reading.

“It’s a process,” DiIanni said. “That’s
the only way I can put it. I did this at GVSU, Jeff did it at Alma, and well as
you and the players do, you don’t create a winning culture or a sustainable
program overnight.

“It takes many days of consistent
effort over many years, a certain work ethic consistently applied, but I’ve
never been afraid of hard work. I’m sure that’s true of Jeff, too.”

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