Adelphi to Welcome Back Alums, Sports Stars, Mike Windischmann, Chris Armas for Inaugural Virtual Speaker Series

Adelphi Reflections, Vol. 1, will feature two prominent men's soccer alumni who found success on the national, Olympic and World Cup stages of soccer in their illustrious careers.

Garden City, NY (11/04/2020) — The Adelphi University Department of Athletics is set to host its inaugural virtual speaker series, titled "Adelphi Reflections," on Wednesday, November 18, at 7 p.m., via the Zoom webinar platform. This event is free of charge to all guests, but registration is required, and each guest will receive the chance to be entered into a free raffle to win a piece of Adelphi apparel signed by our special guests.

Adelphi Reflections, Vol. 1, will feature two prominent men's soccer alumni, Chris Armas '94 and Mike Windischmann '86, both of whom found success on the national, Olympic and World Cup stages of soccer in their illustrious careers.

Windischmann, a 1986 graduate of Adelphi, was a four-year member of the men's soccer program during his time on campus. Named an All-New York State member in each of his four years on campus, he found himself on the highly touted list of All-Americans in 1985. The following year, Windischmann was selected as the Defensive MVP of the Senior Bowl to cap his Hall of Fame career in Garden City.

During his early years at Adelphi, Windischmann was a member of the United States National Youth Team, which competed at the Gronotkin Tournament in Leningrad, U.S.S.R. In the same year, he served as a member of the U.S. team that played in the World University Games in Kobe, Japan, later participating in both the 1985 (Bronze Medal Recipients) and 1986 (Gold Medal Recipients) National Sports Festivals.

Following his senior season, Windischmann went on to compete for the Brooklyn Italians in the New York City's Cosmopolitan League, and split time between the Los Angeles Lazers of the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) and Albany Capitals of the American Soccer League, before retiring from professional soccer in 1990.

Windischmann captained the 1988 U.S. Olympic Team, as well as the 1990 U.S. World Cup Team, which participated in Italy. He played for both the 1990 and 1993 indoor tournament teams that captured bronze and silver medals, respectively. Playing in 56 games for the U.S. National Team, serving as a four-year captain, Windischmann was named the U.S. National Team Player of the Year in 1989 and paved the way for future U.S. team member, Chris Armas.

Armas, a Long Island native, attended Adelphi University from 1990-94 and was a First Team All-American in his senior year. Before switching his allegiance to the United States, during his junior year, Armas competed for Puerto Rico in the 1993 Caribbean Cup. Following his senior season, Armas was selected to play for the USISL's Long Island Rough Riders, which paved the way for his 11-year career in Major League Soccer (Los Angeles Galaxy: 1996-1997, Chicago Fire: 1998-2007).

Being selected to the MLS Best XI for four consecutive seasons, only to have ended by an ACL injury in 2002, Armas was able to secure his fifth Best XI selection, as well as the MLS Comeback Player of the Year award in 2003, after recovering from his setback.

After helping the Fire secure their first (and only) MLS Championship in 1998, Armas debuted for the U.S. National Team in November of that year against Australia, and was selected as the U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year in 2000. Due to his ACL injury, Armas was unable to compete in the 2002 FIFA World Cup, thus never allowing him to compete in the world's most prestigious soccer competition.

Retiring from his playing career in 2007, Armas jumped on as an assistant coach with the Chicago Fire the next season. A three-year hiatus led to his first head coaching position, back where it all started with the Panthers, where he led the women's soccer program from 2011-14. During that span, Armas secured an NSCAA East Region Coach of the Year honor, while taking the program to its first NCAA Tournament since 2007, and coaching five players to All-Region honors.

This experience paved the way for Armas to join the New York Red Bulls' staff as an assistant coach in 2015, a title he held until 2018, when he was promoted to head coach. During his time as manager of the Red Bulls, Armas helped the squad capture the Supporters' Shield in his inaugural season at the helm. He took the Red Bulls to the conference finals that year, but were eliminated by Atlanta United.

Armas' son, Chris Jr., currently competes for the men's soccer program at Adelphi University, carrying on his father's legacy. Details regarding this event, including the Zoom webinar link, will be sent out the day before the event, utilizing individuals' registration information. For more information, please contact adelphiathletics@adelphi.edu or visit the event listing.

About Adelphi Athletics:

A regionally and nationally competitive NCAA Division II institution located in Garden City, N.Y., Adelphi University has been a proud member of the Northeast-10 Conference since 2009. Winners of 17 NCAA Division II National Championships and four NE10 Presidents' Cups, Panther athletes have excelled at the conference, regional and national level, both on the field of play and in the classroom. In turn, the Adelphi athletic department is committed to fostering an environment of diversity, inclusion, equity and success where its student-athletes can thrive both on campus and off. Stay connected with Adelphi Athletics by following the Panthers at aupanthers.com or via social media on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and wear your Panther pride by shopping official Adelphi Panthers gear at our licensed team store.

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