Bud Lewis returned to Wilmington College’s soccer pitch Saturday night but not as head coach, a position he held for 43 years. The college recognized Lewis as a charter inductee into the Ohio Collegiate Soccer Association (OCSA) Hall of Fame.

Players from his 1984 and 2004 teams surrounded him on the field as he accepted the OCSA Hall of Fame award at halftime of the Quakers’ 8-0 victory over visiting Heidelberg University.

Lewis expressed his appreciation for the Hall of Fame recognition and his desire to continue to serve as an ambassador for the “beautiful game” of soccer.

“I am very humbled by this recognition,” he said in wishing to share the recognition with others. “Our success at Wilmington College was in large part due to the great work of so many of my former assistant coaches and the support of Wilmington College’s administration, staff and faculty.”

Lewis added that the OSCA was established in 1953 and is the founding organization for collegiate soccer in Ohio.

“It paved the way for the growth of soccer for all ages throughout the state and continues to serve and recognize the top programs, players and coaches in Ohio,” he said.

With 94 men’s and women’s collegiate soccer programs in the state, the OSCA is the largest state collegiate soccer association in the country.

Lewis coached the college’s men’s soccer team from 1975 through 2017, amassing 506 wins before retiring as one of the NCAA Division III’s most successful coaches. His teams won 10 NAIA District 22 titles between 1977 and 1989, placed in the NAIA Final Four in 1986 and finished in the top 10 nationally numerous times.

After Wilmington College joined the NCAA in 1991, WC won championships each year WC was a member of the Association of Mideast Colleges (AMC), from 1991 through 1995, and Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC), in 1998 and 1999. As a member of the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) beginning in 2000, the Quakers won the regular season title in 2000 and both the regular season and OAC Tournament championships in 2004. They played in the National Tournament in 1996, 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2004, advancing to the Sweet 16 round three times.

His collegiate coaching resume features being selected eight times as NAIA District 22 Coach of the Year, six times as National Soccer Coaches of America Assn. (NSCAA) Mideast Coach of the Year, three times as AMC Coach of the Year and twice as OAC Coach of the Year (2004 and 2017).

In 2004, the NSCAA presented him with the prestigious Bill Jeffrey Award and Wilmington College inducted him into its Athletic Hall of Fame in 2021. He was inducted into the Clinton County Sports Hall of Fame in 2001.

Lewis has a long-time affiliation with the OCSA and currently serves as a member of its Executive Council. He previously received the association’s prestigious Honor Award.

A native of Penfield, N.Y., Lewis was a National High School All-America soccer player and also was an All-American at Bowling Green State University. Lewis has been inducted into the hall of fame at both Penfield and BGSU.

Lewis played professionally for the Cincinnati Comets in the American Soccer League in 1975 and the Buffalo Blazers of the Canadian National Soccer League in 1976.

Lewis also worked in Wilmington College’s Student Life area for much of his coaching career and continues to serve the institution as a part-time recruiter of international students. He and his wife, Margo, have three children and nine grandchildren.