Wiesner Finds Job to Bank On

Brian Wiesner, who resigned last week as women’s soccer coach at Cal State Northridge, said Friday he has accepted a job with a Walnut, Calif., mortgage banking company.

Wiesner, who coached the Matadors to a 20-53-4 record in the program’s first four seasons, said he will be working as the manager of the marketing department for Vintage Funding. “It’s going to be a happy holiday,” Wiesner said. “It was time for a change for me and the team.”

Wiesner had continued recruiting and scheduling future opponents for the Matadors after the 1998 season ended in early November, but said he chose to resign last week when he received little support in a meeting with Northridge athletic administrators.

“They weren’t going to negotiate anything new into my contract that was going to keep me there any longer and I wasn’t going to hang around for another risky season,” said Wiesner, whose multiyear contract with Northridge expires Dec. 31.

“If you go into a situation like that and people want to work things out, fine. But when they don’t, how stubborn do you have to be to keep beating your head against a wall?”

Wiesner dismissed recent negative comments by several of his former Northridge players. Those players, including starting goalkeeper Tawni Takagi, said Wiesner had not been respected by team members.

“It’s better to be gone than to deal with that kind of petty stuff anymore,” Wiesner said. “I want those kids to do well, so if a change makes them play better and enjoy the game more, so be it.”