UMD Athletics

Fresh off of leading the Superior City FC women to a 6-2-3 record at the helm,  University of Minnesota Duluth women's soccer head coach Greg Cane hired Aaron Blanchard to serve as an assistant coach for the Bulldogs ahead of the 2024 season. Blanchard will begin his second season with the Bulldogs in 2025.

Blachard had already coached seven Bulldogs with Superior before he came to UMD -- including senior defender Cambelle Christensen, graduated forward Anna Tobias (who led the team in scoring), graduated midfielder Victoria Thorson, senior forward Morgan Eckerle, senior midfielder Malory Russ, sophomore forward Alyssa Doyle and sophomore defenseman Gwendolyn Lilly. Prior to taking over the Superior City FC, Blanchard was the head women's soccer coach and Fitness Center Coordinator at Northland College. For the three years before that, Blanchard was an assistant coach for both the Jacks and Jill's soccer programs from 2020 until 2023. Blanchard's coaching experience also includes roles at Cloquet High School (JV coach and assistant varsity coach 2019-2020), as well as with the Gitchi Gummi Soccer Club 2018-2020).

Prior to graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Superior with a degree in exercise science and coaching minor in 2020, Blanchard was a defender for the Yellowjackets for two seasons in 2017 and 2018 and played in 32 games. He helped UW-Superior win two UMAC championships over that span and scored the game-winning goal against Augsburg in the first round of the NCAA tournament in 2018 to advance the Yellowjackets to the second round of the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history. Before his time at Superior, Blanchard was a starter for North Iowa Area Community College and is a native of Omaha, Nebraska.