Hammer FC is pleased to introduce Rashawn (Shawn) Lamar as the newly appointed U10 to U12 Boys Director of Coaching.  Thom Nickley is now the U10 to U12 Girls Director of Coaching.  This move allows Hammer FC the opportunity to drive more attention against these age groups.   

"Shawn brings a deep passion for developing an understanding for the game of soccer," says Buck Lally (Hammer FC General Manager).  For the past several years, Shawn has been in the Tampa, FL area training with various clubs and operating his own speed and agility training business, FRL Speed.  Shawn left the Tampa area from 2006-2007 to work with the TSC-Texans of Houston, Texas.  While there, he trained, coached and managed several teams, ages U11-U14. 

Until very recently, Shawn was a very busy and prolific player.   He played collegiately at Coker College (Hartsville, SC) from 1997-2001, where he was a 1^st  Team All-Conference player for two years (Carolinas-Virginia Athletic Conference), and the conference’s leading scorer with 15 goals (16 games) in 1999.  Upon leaving Coker, Shawn moved to Florida where he played several years in the USL for both the Cocoa Expos and the Tampa Bay Nighthawks.  In 2006, he played in the Faroe Islands for KI Klaksvik. 

In addition to his soccer background, Shawn has worked for several years with the Nike Sparq training program in camps and the evaluation of collegiate and professional athletes.  He has also worked for Velocity Sports Performance as a speed and agility coach/trainer.  Shawn has a B.A. in Exercise Science and Fitness Programming and is a certified Speed and Agility trainer.  He also holds a USSF ‘C’ License.    

Shawn will begin his career with Hammer FC on August 9th.  Please welcome Shawn when you see him during preseason training. 

Hammer FC is proud to announce that Michelle Salmon (UC Women’s Head Coach) and Alex Morawiecki (XU Men’s Asst Head Coach) have joined the Hammer staff as our Women’s and Men’s Technical Trainers.  Don’t worry, all you Bearcat or Muskie fans, Coach Salmon and Coach Morawiecki will both continue to serve their respective positions UC and Xavier as well.

At Hammer, Coach Salmon’s and Coach Morawiecki’s responsibilities will include player training and development (primarily training U14 to U17 all levels in the Spring, and U14 and younger in the Fall), Coach Education (working with our General Manager to develop our younger coaches), and Hammer University (working with our players on College Preparation and Advocacy).

“ I am truly excited to be a part of Hammer FC.  I believe in the development of players and having each player reach their full potential; this is a core value of this club.  I look forward to working with everyone involved with Hammer and continue our pursuit of developing the best players in Cincinnati,” says Coach Salmon.

“I am excited to join the staff at Hammer and look forward to the opportunity ahead.  Having worked in a variety of club and collegiate settings, I can confidently say that Hammer is set up for success and is focused on helping kids learn and enjoy the beautiful game.  Additionally, I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work in all aspects of the club; parent and coach education, player advocacy within Hammer University as well as working on the field as the Men’s Technical Trainer.  I look forward to helping our players set and exceed their goals, while creating lifelong memories in the process,” says Coach Morawiecki.

We are very excited to have both Coach Salmon and Coach Morawiecki join our dedicated staff and increasing the level of training and development our players are already getting. Please feel free to greet Michelle Salmon and Alex Morawiecki as you see them at our training facilities.

Sam came to Hammer in the 2009 Spring season.  He is a local product growing up in the Anderson area.  Sam played club soccer for Team Cincinnati and then Cincinnati United Premier where he was team captain from 2002 to 2004. He played high school ball at Anderson High School where he a perennial All-Star and was Captain his 2001 and 2002 seasons.

After Anderson High School, Sam went to the University of Cincinnati and earned a degree in Criminal Justice.  Sam played played Varsity all four years and started 68 or 77 games.  He was voted captain for the 2005 and 2006 seasons.  Sam was also voted to the 2003 Conference USA All-Freshmen Team and was selected for the SMU All-Tournament Team in 2006.  During his playing years at UC, the Bearcats were the Conference USA regular season Champs in 2003 and the Big East regular season Champs in 2006.  Sam had the privilege of making NCAA College Cup appearances in both 2003 and 2006.

After college, Sam played for the Cincinnati Kings USL-2 team in 2007 for one season making 14 starts.

Before coming to Hammer, Sam had already had significant coaching experience.  Sam was the NKU Assistant Men’s Soccer Coach from 2007 to 2008.  Sam then went back to his Alma Mater and served as the UC Men’s Assistant in 2008-2009 season.  Sam also serves as the Anderson High School Girl’s Varsity Assistant where he gets the privilege to coach with his father, Bil Miller (former Hammer Girls Coach). 

Sam comes from a long line of Bearcats.  His dad Bil was the UC Goalkeeper from 1976 to 1980 while Sam’s grandfather played football and baseball for UC and is in the UC Athletic Hall of Fame.  Sam has three sisters Emily 24, Liz 20 (current Bearcat Soccer player), Maddy 18.

Sam currently holds his NSCAA National and Advance National Licenses.

“I have always loved soccer and I hope that my energy and enjoyment is transmitted to players in the club. I grew up watching and playing as many matches as possible and that translates into an appreciation for everything surrounding the game. Great memories of being successful in State Cup and at National tournaments led me to strive for more at the college and professional levels. Soccer is a great avenue to travel the world and has allowed me to play in Bermuda and Norway and be a fan in England. My goal as a coach now is to help players at Hammer compete and push themselves further, working as hard as possible and seeing where their efforts take them in the game.” Sam Miller

Sam has personally experienced what it takes to play and coach at a very high level.  We are very pleased to have Sam Miller as part of our Hammer FC family!

Tiffany, a native of Phoenix, Arizona, where she played for Sereno Soccer Club, that is ranked one of the top 15 clubs in the nation, came to Hammer in the 2009 spring season.  While at Sereno, she led them to three state championships, a Region IV semifinal, Region IV quarterfinal, and a Region IV runner-up.  She was team captain all her years of club soccer.

She played high school soccer for Arcadia High School, where she was a three-time Arizona 4A Player of the Year, name 2002 First Team All-Arizona, a three-time All –Region honoree, and a two-time All-State team member.  While there, she led the team to the 2001 4A State Championship and 2000 Regional Championship.  Entering her senior season, which she didn’t play, she had a career 67 goals and registered 56 assists. She was team captain her sophomore and junior year.

In 2003, she was invited to play in the McDonalds All-America game and was named to that All-American team.  She was a member of the Arizona State Olympic Developmental team from 1998-2002 and a Region IV team member in 2001 and 2002.

After high school, Tiffany went to Santa Clara University where she was a four-year starter and received her degree in Communications.  She was captain her senior year and while there had the privilege of playing in four NCAA College Cup appearances.  In 2004, Santa Clara reached the Final Four and lost to Notre Dame who became the eventual NCAA College Cup National Champions.  During her freshman year, she was named to the Soccer Buzz West Region All-Freshman team and was an honorable mention All-West Coach Conference Honoree.  As a sophomore, she was an honorable mention All-WCC selection and was named to both Soccer America’s and Soccer Buzz’s Elite Teams.  As a junior, she was named to the All-WCC Second Team.  Early in her senior year, she suffered a season-ending knee injury thus missing the rest of her senior year and losing a year of eligibility.

Tiffany currently holds a “D” license and is coaching the new WPSL team during their first season this summer.

Club General Manager:  William “Buck” Lally

Club Manager:  Tiffany Roberts 

    Russell Lewis              Rashawn "Shawn" Lamar         Thom Nickley       William "Buck" Lally      Clay Revis         

Hammer FC has continues to grow and evolve to better serve the training and development needs of players. Hammer’s mission is focused on player development.  What we stand for is player development;  nothing more, nothing less.  We believe that through robust soccer training, the five Technical Staff members will "bring out the best soccer player, you can be."  The staff promises to work hard on the player’s behalf.  They expect that player work hard on their own behalf.   

This organizational structure is designed to deliver robust training throughout the developmental years of the player.  It is designed to drive consistency of technical skill development across ages and genders during a players younger years in at Hammer FC, while driving consistency of tactical and technical skill development specific to gender needs at the older ages. We have continuously focused on delivering one thing;  better training. It is through better training that we believe we prepare Hammer players to perform at their best;  to develop to their fullest.

You truly will not find a better collection of more dedicated directors anywhere.  They are here because they love the game. They are at Hammer because they love to train and develop young athletes.  Hammer FC is incredibly proud of our Staff.  We will continue to tweak our structure to ensure that we always provide the best for Hammer players.

If anyone is interested in coaching at Hammer FC, please feel free to contact anyone of the Directors.  

Hammer FC Coaching Application 

Hammer FC is proud to announce Dr. Howard Schertzinger to the newly appointed position of Club Physician.  In his role, Dr. Schertzinger will work closely with our Directors of Coaching to ensure the physical well being of our players.

Howard J. Schertzinger Jr., MD is President and Chief Operating Officer of Advanced Pain Solutions in West Chester, Ohio, specializing in non-surgical spine and orthopedics.  He is Adjunct Professor, Medical Director, and Team Physician at the College of Mount St. Joseph in Cincinnati, Ohio.  He also serves as team physician for The Summit Country Day High School, Cincinnati Gymnastics Academy, Classic Hammer FC and Flip and Twist Gymnastics.  His office serves as a Community Preceptor site for Ohio State medical students.  

Dr. Schertzinger’s research interests include osteoarthritis, pain management and medical illness in sports medicine.  He is a nationally recognized speaker on the topics of sports medicine, osteoarthritis and pain management including participation in the Arthritis Huddle.

Dr. Schertzinger is a member of the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine, and American College of Sports Medicine.  He is a Diplomate of the National Board of Medical Examiners, in Internal Medicine, and Pediatrics.  Dr. Schertzinger holds a Certificate of Added Qualification in Sports Medicine.

Dr. Schertzinger received his undergraduate degree from the University of Cincinnati, his medical degree from The Ohio State University College of Medicine in Columbus, Ohio followed by his residency in Internal Medicine and Pediatrics at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina.  He completed his fellowship in Sports Medicine at the University of North Carolina.

He resides in Loveland, Ohio with his wife Kathleen and children Meredith, Henry, and Harrison.