NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana hired Justin Besley as assistant coach for its first-year women's soccer program.
        Besley — last name pronounced BEZZ-lee — trains the Gold Nuggets' goalkeepers. He assists with recruiting, overall training, tactical analysis and day-to-day management.
        Besley joined XULA after two seasons as a men's soccer graduate assistant at Friends University in Wichita, Kan. The Falcons were 23-9-2 during his tenure and reached the semifinals of the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament in the spring of 2021.
        Besley was a boys soccer assistant coach for three seasons at NSU University School in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and helped the Sharks win three district championships and one state championship.
        Besley coached goalkeepers in the youth developmental Elite Clubs National League and the men's professional United Soccer League.
        Besley received his bachelor's degree in 2017 from Florida Gulf Coast University — he was a goalkeeper on the Eagles' 2015 team — and a master's of business administration from Friends in 2022. He earned a U.S. Soccer Federation F coaching license.
        The Gold Nuggets' next game will start at 1 p.m. Sept. 6 at NCAA Division II Spring Hill in Mobile, Ala. XULA is a longtime NAIA member.

Justin Besley photo by Yamlak Tsega