Sheldon Cipriani re-joined FGCU as an assistant coach in March of 2017 and is in his entering his seventh season with the program in 2023.

The Eagles had a strong 2022 season recording an 8-5-4 season and being the only team in the ASUN Conference to defeat No. 10 Lipscomb (10/29/22). Cormier led FGCU to the ASUN Tournament semifinals after defeating North Florida 4-0. FGCU delivered an upset victory against Northwestern and recorded its sixth win over a Power Five school in program history dating back to victories against Penn State (2008), Ohio State (2010), South Carolina (2012), Rutgers (2016) and Michigan (2019).

The Eagles also delivered non-conference victories ove Georgia Southern, Mercer, and Florida Atlantic.


The abbreviated spring campaign in 2021 saw the Eagles post an overall 3-4-4 record as they went 2-2-2 in ASUN divisional play, claiming the top spot in the south standings. FGCU defeated UNF in the quarterfinals before taking down the north’s top seed, Bellarmine en route to the ASUN Championship game.

At the conclusion of the season, O’Vonte Mullings was named the ASUN Player of the Year, Gustavo Vasconcelos was dubbed Goalkeeper of the Year while Ethan Dudley was stabbed as Defensive Player of the Year. Shandel Senior joined the aforementioned trio on the ASUN First Team as Jahvanie Hammond landed a spot on the All-Freshman Team. 

The Eagles posted a 9-8-2 record in 2019 and reached the ASUN Championship game for the fifth time in program history. In arguably the toughest schedule to date, out of the 17 teams FGCU faced in 2019, 10 of those opponents were either nationally ranked or were receiving votes in multiple polls. The Eagles defeated two ranked teams in No. 13 Michigan and No. 17 Charlotte. All said, the squad reached as high as No. 12 in 2019, just one ranking shy of the program record set back in 2016.

Cipriani helped guide the Eagles to a 9-5-2 record in 2018 as they captured their seventh ASUN regular season title, including six all-conference nods. The Green and Blue reached the ASUN Tournament semifinals for the eighth-straight season (every year of eligibility).

Three Eagles grabbed superlative awards with Preston Kilwien being dubbed the unanimous Defensive Player of the Year, Gustavo Vasconcelos was named the ASUN Goalkeeper of the Year and O’Vonte Mullings rounded out the First Team as he earned Freshman of the Year. Kamar Marriott (Second Team) became the program’s third player drafted to the MLS as Kansas Sporting KC took him in the first round with the 21st overall pick. Meanwhile, Ethan Dudley joined Mullings on the All-Freshman team.

In his first season as a full-time staff member in 2017, Cipriani helped guide FGCU to an 8-6-3 (4-1-1 ASUN) record in 2017. The Eagles reached the ASUN Tournament semifinals for the seventh-straight season (every year of eligibility), and Cipriani coached a program-record 10 all-conference selections.

Highlighting the all-conference recognitions was Nicholas Samayoa being named ASUN Defensive Player of the Year, and Shak Adams and Albert Ruiz joining him on the ASUN First Team.

Cipriani served as a volunteer assistant coach on the Eagles' 2014 team which won ASUN regular season and tournament titles and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.

A native of Trinidad and Tobago, Cipriani prior to his full-time assistant promotion was a United States Soccer Federation Development Academy Director, coaching Boys U13 through U18 with the Florida Rush Soccer Club in Orlando.

Cipriani brings a wealth of coaching experience from the youth, amateur and collegiate levels throughout the state of Florida. In addition to his time with FGCU, he served as USF’s Director of Satellite Camps from 2010-12, overseeing the day-to-day operations of the camp and planning all sessions.
 
From 2014-15, Cipriani was the head coach of the Lee County Strikers in Fort Myers. That came on the heels of an eight-year tenure as the Director of Coaching and Player Development with the Gainesville Soccer Alliance.
 
Cipriani has served as a head and assistant coach in the Premier Development League – the top men’s amateur soccer organization in the United States. Cipriani was the head coach of VSI Tampa in 2013 and has had stints as an assistant coach with the Ocala Stampede in both 2012 and 2014. Cipriani helped guide the Stampede to a conference championship in their inaugural season in 2012, and a national semifinal appearance in 2014.
 
A 1994 alumnus of Coker College (Hartsville, S.C.), Cipriani graduated with a degree in Business Management and was named an Academic All-American. He has three children: Sydney (20), Malakai (15) and Athena (6).