Student-Athlete Advisory Committee Advisors

A National All-American and 1998 graduate from St. Lawrence University, Franco Bari became the head coach of the women's soccer program in the fall of 2008.  Under his leadership, the squad made its first postseason appearance and its first 10-game winning season since 2003.  Since Bari's arrival, the Saints have maintained a regional ranking while also breaking onto the national stage when they reached a ranking of No. 25 during the 2008 season.  

Bari has compiled a 38-24-9 record heading into the 2012 campaign, and has coached over 20 Liberty League All-Conference players and four NSCAA Regional All-Americans in his four years at the helm of the Saints program.   

Deshaya Williams, a three-time All America thrower and the 2003 NCAA Division I women's discus champion while a student at Penn State, has joined the St. Lawrence University athletic staff as assistant track and field coach for men and women and assistant coordinator of student athlete development.

Williams, who spent last season as a track and field assistant at SUNY Fredonia, will coach the throws for the Saint men and women. A native of Saratoga Springs, she earned her bachelor's and master's degrees at Penn State in 2002 and 2004 and earned a second master's degree from the Erskine Theological Seminary in 2009. She served as a graduate assistant for the Penn State women's program and was a volunteer assistant at Clemson University from 2004-2006.

As an athlete, she participated in the US Olympic Trials in 2000 and 2004. She was a three-time Big Ten Champion, a member of the USA National Team and both USA Junior National Champion and Junior Pan American Champion in 1999. She was the first women's national champion in Penn State history when she won the discus title in 2003.