ASU Men’s Coach Dead At 49

Shaun Pendleton, the men’s soccer coach at Appalachian State, was found dead Tuesday at his home in Boone, athletics-department officials said in a release Wednesday. He was 49. Foul play was not suspected.

“The entire Appalachian family is stunned and saddened by the loss of Coach Pendleton,” athletics director Charlie Cobb said in a prepared statement. “Our thoughts, prayers and concerns are with his wife, Jody, his friends and, especially, Coach Matt Nelson and the 27 special young men of our soccer program.”

Chancellor Kenneth E. Peacock said in the statement: “We are saddened by this loss within our community and the campus joins me in extending our deepest sympathy to those touched by Coach Pendleton’s death. I know that our Appalachian family will join together to ensure that our student-athletes and athletics staff have the support needed during this difficult time. “

Pendleton was in his fourth season as ASU’s head coach and had a 27-26-4 record, including 1-2 this season. He led the Mountaineers to second-place finishes in the Southern Conference in 2008 and 2010.

Before taking the job at Appalachian, Pendleton spent 22 seasons as the head coach at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla. He led the Knights to an NAIA national championship in 1991 and to the NCAA Division II title in 2003. He had a 347-79-18 career record, and his .802 winning percentage is the highest in Division II history (for coaches with a minimum of 10 D-II seasons).

A native of Sheffield, England, Pendleton was a two-time All-America at Akron and received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the school in 1985. He played four seasons in the American Indoor Soccer Association, setting a league record by appearing in 177 consecutive matches.

Appalachian is scheduled to play in the Davidson adidas Classic this weekend, against Gardner-Webb on Friday and Detroit on Sunday. A decision on whether the Mountaineers will play as scheduled has not been made.