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Pete Cuadrado, a two-time Division I Conference Coach of the Year and NCAA Tournament head coach, was named the first women’s soccer program in Tarleton State University history. The program played its first games in the Fall 2022 season.

Cuadrado built Tarleton State a mighty schedule in 2023, squaring off against a Power Five opponent for the first time in school history against the BIG 12's, Houston Cougars. The Texans ultimately fell, 4-1, but scoring a goal against a BIG 12 program in its second year of existence was a big accomplishment for Tarleton State. 

As a team, the Texans led the WAC in total saves (139) and tied for the lead in fewest offside calls (19). The Purple and White had the fewest fouls in conference games (49) and second fewest in all games (125). The squad's 89 corner kicks was the fifth most in the WAC in the 2023 season. In total, the Texans scored 21 goals on 156 shots, with 79 coming on goal.

In Tarleton’s inaugural season, Cuadrado led the Texans to a 6-9-3 overall record and 2-7-2 WAC record. In their first game as a program, the Texans tied North Dakota State in a neutral site match held in Louisiana on Aug. 19. Two days later, Tarleton knocked off host Nicholls 1-0 for their first win as a program (Aug. 21). The Texans opened the season 4-1-1, including the first home victory in program history against Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Cuadrado closed the season on a pair of wins against Stephen F. Austin and UTRGV for the squad’s first conference victories. The Texans held UTPB to just one shot on Sept. 9, the lowest shots allowed by a WAC team in 2022. 

Individually, Cuadrado helped guide Mila Bettinelli to a Freshman All-WAC selection following the season. Bettinelli became the first Texan to recieve a women’s soccer WAC postseason award. She finished in the WAC top-10 in four offensive categories. Kiki Baurmann ranked third in the conference in assists and was one of four players in the league to record a three-assist game. In goal, Mikayla Kendall ranked fifth in shutouts (5) and ninth in total saves (60). As a squad, the Texans finished third in the conference in goals against average.
 
Before coming to Tarleton State, Cuadrado spent nine seasons as the head women’s soccer coach at North Dakota State, then spent another nine seasons at the helm at Wyoming, where he’s the school’s all-time winningest coach. Cuadrado has been an NCAA Division I head coach for the last 20 seasons between North Dakota State, Wyoming and Tarleton State. He’s led Tarleton State in their first NCAA Division I seasons and North Dakota State from Division II reclassification into NCAA Division I in 2003.
 
“I want to thank President Dr. James Hurley, Lonn Reisman, the entire search committee and all the wonderful people I met on my visit to Stephenville,” said Cuadrado. “I was completely impressed with how the athletic department is a family and how they are moving forward into the Division I transition. It’s exciting and humbling for me to be the first women’s soccer head coach at Tarleton.”
 
Cuadrado has established success in helping build two separate Division I teams into championship programs, posting a career 168-131-42 record as a head coach prior to arriving in Stephenville. At Wyoming, Cuadrado helped the Cowgirls win the Mountain West Championship in 2018, the first championship in program history. Cuadrado is the only soccer coach in Wyoming history with multiple 10-win seasons, which he has done four times in nine seasons. Cuadrado was also voted Mountain West Conference Coach of the Year in 2014 after leading the Cowgirls to an 8-3 league record.
 
“We are extremely excited to welcome Pete Cuadrado to Tarleton as the first women’s soccer head coach in school history,” said Reisman. “As the hiring committee went through the impressive list of candidates, Coach Cuadrado’s name continued to rise to the top each time. Pete has won at every level he’s been at, winning championships in the Summit and Mountain West Conferences as a Division I head coach for almost two decades.
 
“He brings an immediate impact and credibility to this program and the WAC,” Reisman added. “The state of Texas has a strong reputation of producing high-quality women’s soccer student-athletes and we couldn’t think of a better time to add the program with a championship-caliber head coach to lead the way. We are thrilled to have Pete and his family join us at Tarleton as he takes us through the transition process and beyond and I have no doubt he will be tremendously successful, as he has been throughout his career.”
 
Prior to Wyoming, Cuadrado spent nine seasons as the head coach at North Dakota State from 2003-11 where he helped the Bison transition from NCAA Division II to I in his first season at the helm. Cuadrado left NDSU as the program’s all-time wins leader after winning a pair of conference championships and advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2010 where they tied with No. 6 Texas A&M 1-1 in the opening round. In 2005, Cuadrado was voted as the NCAA Division I Independent Coach of the Year after a six-win turnaround in his second season at the Division I level. Cuadrado posted double-digit winning seasons in seven of his eight seasons at NDSU, including a 15-3-2 record in his final season in 2011, which is the most wins in a season in school history.
 
In his career as a head coach, Cuadrado has three regular season conference championships and two coach of the year awards. He has coached three defensive player of the year winners, 52 all-conference selections, 15 all-region selections, 100 conference all-academic recipients, and 17 NSCAA team academic awards.
 
Cuadrado got his coaching career started at Valparaiso as an assistant where he also earned his master’s degree in athletic administration. He then spent two years at Illinois State before landing his first head coaching job at North Dakota State. Throughout his time coaching he has been active in the Olympic Development Program (ODP). Cuadrado also has his USSF National “B” Coaching License, National Goalkeeping License and National Youth License.
 
Cuadrado played college soccer at Northeastern Illinois for two seasons before transferring to TCU. He was a member of the Horned Frogs soccer program that was ranked as high as No. 8 regionally and earned his bachelor’s degree in marketing in 2000. He is married to Dr. Babette Cuadrado, PhD., who earned a doctorate in Adult and Higher Education from University of South Dakota, and the couple has a daughter, Kami.