Our Staff

Kris Bertsch will enter his first season as the Lindenwood men's soccer head coach in the fall of 2023.  Bertsch was hired on Janaury 11, 2023.

Bertsch comes to Lindenwood after spending five seasons at Saint Louis University as the top assistant coach where he helped guide the Billikens to an impressive 53-22-14 record.  Individually, Bertsch has been recognized as one of the Top Assistant Coaches in the country four different times.  During his time at SLU, Bertsch was a key part of a staff that rebuilt the Billiken program into a national power.  Saint Louis captured back-to-back Atlantic 10 Conference regular-season and tournament titles in 2021 and 2022, resulting in two-straight NCAA Men’s Soccer Championship appearances.  In 2022, Bertsch and the SLU staff earned the honor as the NCAA Division I Southeast Region Staff of the Year by the United Soccer Coaches.
 
In 2021, Bertsch helped the Billikens earn a No. 2 national ranking during the season, finish undefeated in the regular season, and reach the quarterfinals of the NCAA Championship, which was SLU’s deepest run since 2003.  The Billikens concluded the year with a 16-1-4 record, and earned a top-10 nod from three reputable sources, including a No. 5 ranking from Top Drawer Soccer.  After eight players signed professional contracts, SLU reloaded and defended it’s A-10 regular-season and tournament titles, and moved to the second round of the NCAA Tournament with a final ranking of No. 25 in the polls.
 
In his five seasons at SLU, Bertsch has coached 34 all-conference selections, including the 2021 and 2022 A-10 Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year.  A total of 15 players have earned all-region honors, and two players have earned All-American plaudits.  In 2021, Bertsch coached a remarkable six players who would go on to be drafted in Major League Soccer, including three who earned MLS Generation Adidas contracts and four who were drafted in the first round.  In all, 17 Billikens have earned professional soccer contracts since the 2019 season.  Bertsch helped the program acquire five top-25 recruiting classes, including three ranked in the Top 10.  In 2023, Bertsch and the SLU staff has earned the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation.
 
Hired by Atlanta United FC in the summer of 2016, Bertsch was an integral part of the academy staff for two years.  The academy's aim was to help provide professional pathways to MLS through on the field development.  Atlanta United earned the US Soccer Developmental Academy National Championship in its first season.  Bertsch assisted in helping to develop more than 25 Atlanta United players earn youth national team invitations, while the first team concluded the 2018 season as MLS Cup Champions in the club’s second season.
 
Bertsch’s collegiate coaching career includes stops at national powers Louisville, Xavier, Syracuse, and UConn.  In all, he has more than 20 years of college coaching and playing experience, including helping to develop more than 60 collegiate players to the professional ranks.  As a student-athlete and coach, Bertsch has been a part of 12 NCAA Tournament teams including advancing to at least the NCAA second round on nine occasions, the round of 16 on six occasions, and the NCAA Elite Eight twice.
 
Bertsch was a four-year starting midfielder at American University, where he earned first-team all-conference honors.  Bertsch helped lead the Eagles to a Patriot League Championship, and two NCAA Tournaments, including a second round and NCAA Third Round appearance.  He graduated from American with a marketing degree in 2003.

Nic Powers will enter his first season as an assistant coach in 2023. 

"I am excited to bring Nic Powers into the Lindenwood Soccer family said head coach Kris Bertsch The first thing you notice about Nic is how well he is received by his peers. We are always looking to bring in great people into our program and we certainly have that in Nic. Secondly, he is an extremely passionate, hard-working person who has a growth mindset to improve in all areas while he holds himself to high levels of accountability."

Powers comes to St. Charles after spending one season as the head men's soccer coach at Culver-Stockton. At the helm of the Wildcats, he compiled a 5-11-2 record in 2022.During his only season, Powers had eight players named Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athletes. 

Prior to his time with the Wildcats, Powers spent four seasons as an assistant coach at Columbia College. During that time,  the Cougars men's program compiled a 70-12-4 overall record and reached the NAIA Final Four in 2019, 2020 and 2021. The women's program recorded a 66-16-3 overall record and made four appearances at the NAIA national tournament.

We are very fortunate to have someone join our staff who already has head coaching experience at the collegiate level while also being an assistant coach for many years at a program that regularly competes for National Championships, continued Bertsch. "We think Nic will hit the ground running at Lindenwood and our student-athletes and staff are lucky to have him in our program."

Powers has also served at the director of operations for the Saint Louis Maritsa Soccer Club, a men's semi-pro soccer club that plays in the United Premier Soccer League.

During his playing career, Powers helped Columbia to the NAIA National Tournament two times, including an Elite Eight appearance in 2015. The Cougars also won the America Midwest Conference regular season title in 2015 and the AMC Tournament title in 2016.

"Nic's a selfless leader who cares about giving the best version of himself every day." stated Bertsch "I believe it's a player's game and therefore we want coaches that are player centric in their approach who care about self-improvement so they can better mentor the individuals we work with on a daily basis."

Powers earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from Columbia in 2017, and a master's of business administration degree from Columbia in 2020.

Tyler Doll enters his first season as an assistant coach during the 2023 season. 

"We are excited to welcome Tyler back to his hometown and to join the Lindenwood family," said head coach Kris Bertsch. "He comes from a winning culture and provides our staff and players with invaluable expertise in goalkeeping."

Doll comes to St. Charles after spending the last three seasons on the coaching staff at Northern Illinois University, where he worked primarily with the goalkeepers.  Doll helped NIU to one of the finest seasons in program history in 2021 as the Huskies tied a school record with 15 wins and won the Mid-American Conference double as regular season and tournament champions, a first for the program since 2006. NIU made its fourth all-time NCAA Tournament appearance, advancing to the second round for the third time, and finished the season ranked 21st in the United Soccer Coaches national rankings.

"Tyler is passionate about the game and wants to leave things better than he found them," stated Bertsch "This is evidenced through his work on and off the field assisting student-athletes to be at their best.  On the field, Tyler has helped players to the professional level in addition to mentoring top goalkeepers in college soccer. "We look forward to our student-athletes getting the opportunity to work with Tyler on a daily basis."

A native of St. Louis, Mo., Doll was a 2019 CoSIDA Academic All-District honoree as a goalkeeper at Division II Dominican College in Orangeburg, N.Y. In two seasons with the Chargers, Doll appeared in 31 matches, making 30 starts, and twice was named Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Goalkeeper of the Week. Doll began his collegiate career at Central Methodist University in Fayette, Mo., spending two seasons with the Eagles.

Doll has a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management from Dominican College.