As a soccer coach, he enters his third season at the helm of the Gothic Knights in 2008, becoming the longest serving coach in program history this season. In the first 15 years of the program’s history, no one has mentored the program for longer than two seasons, and that lack of stability at the top has been the primary reason why NJCU has struggled to maintain success in women’s soccer. Bielan is on pace to become the program’s all-time winningest coach, needing just four wins in 2008 for that to happen.
But when Bielan was hired as the 13th head coach in school history in August 2006 after serving as the team’s assistant coach in 2005, he wasn’t in it for personal accolades and he wasn’t going to let the women’s soccer team at his alma mater fall into the same trap as it had with past coaches. Since his hiring, Bielan has taken steps towards turning NJCU into a winner. His clubs have won 10 games in his first two seasons (10-26), including a 7-11 record in 2007—the second winningest season in school history and the most since 1994 when NJCU won nine games.
The dramatic improvement of the 2007 club can be tied directly to Bielan, as it was his first recruiting class that turned the tide in the goal of rebuilding the program.
Among the most notable additions in his first class was Jennifer Albuja, the 2007 New Jersey Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year, who scored single-season school records of 24 goals and 51 points, en route to becoming only the second player in school history to be named First-Team All-NJAC or Rookie of the Year, an honor last achieved in 1994. Her 24 goals are tied for the fifth most in single-season NJAC history and the most since 2004. Her 51 points are the sixth most in league history.
In all, eight players have received All-NJAC honors in his first two seasons at the helm of the Gothic Knights. Meanwhile, Katie Feehan was a two-time ESPN The Magazine CoSIDA Academic All-America® College Division Selection, including a First-Team Academic All-America nod in 2007.
But it’s his life outside of soccer that is as notable as anything he’ll ever accomplish on the pitch. Bielan has been employed as a professional firefighter in Bayonne, NJ since 1995, and his actions on the city’s rescue missions alone make him a role model and a hero.
Even when he’s off-duty, Bielan is saving lives. On June 4, 2007, he played an instrumental role in saving the lives of three men trapped in the wreckage of a vehicle accident on the Garden State Parkway in Wall, NJ, while he was on his way to a training session. His act of heroism was at the time, anonymous. Since then, Bielan has received an overwhelming amount of positive national media attention, and his inspirational story has been chronicled by such organizations as the Associated Press and the NCAA.
On June 22, 2008 he received “Fireman of the Year” honors from the Hudson County Latino Coalition for his life-saving actions and on May 26, Bielan also received the “Distinguished Service Award” from the City of Bayonne Fire Department during Medal Day ceremonies.
Those are just a few of the eight major awards he has received as a professional emergency responder. On October 22, 2000, the Northern Valley of Ancient & Accepted Scottish Rite presented Bielan with its “Recognition of Valor and Heroism” for rescuing a firefighter who fell off a roof into a collapse zone after evacuation tones were activated while battling a blaze. Bielan pulled his colleague to safety seconds before the structure collapsed. The City of Bayonne also presented him a Letter of Commendation for his actions.
On March 24, 2000, he received a Class 2 Gold Medal from FMBA Local 11 for outstanding heroism and valor, in the face of dangerous conditions, and risk to personal safety. On April 30, 1999, he earned the NJ State FMBA “Distinction of Bravest of the Brave.” The same day, the City of Bayonne honored him with a Unit Citation, for discovering and saving two elderly people from a third floor structure fire.
On April 17, 1996, he received his first Letter of Commendation from the City of Bayonne for his off-duty actions during a house fire.
A former three-year men’s soccer player at then Jersey City State College from1992-94, Bielan returned to his alma mater in August 2005 as an assistant coach for the women’s team.
Of his return to NJCU, Bielan said: “As a former player and graduate of NJCU, I’m proud to be leading my school into the future. Our goal is to make an impact in the conference. I want to bring consistency and competition back to the women’s soccer program. We’re looking to pull in players who have a love of the sport and want to be part of something great. In the past, we haven’t had stability in the head coaching position, which hasn’t been conducive to the program succeeding. I’m here for the long haul.”
Bielan, a 1997 graduate of the University with a bachelor of arts in Special Education and minor in Psychology/Counseling, previously served as the head coach of the junior varsity team at Holy Family Academy, and as assistant coach of the varsity program. There, he was a basic to advanced soccer skills trainer, and an individual skills troubleshooter.
Since 2004, he has also served as coach and manager of the Bayonne Blazers Football Club, a women’s indoor soccer team.
From 1993-95, he was an undergraduate assistant of the then-Jersey City State College women’s team during the first three years of the program’s existence, working for head coach Mike Lyons.
Other coaching experience includes the Eagles Indoor Soccer League from 1991-93, and with the Toms River Youth Soccer Association from 1988-91.
After transferring to NJCU from Ocean County College, where he played for Lyons, Bielan made an immediate impact on the 1992 program as a sophomore, finishing with six goals and one assist for 13 points, while playing 14 of 16 games for the Gothic Knights as a defender. He finished second on the team in goals and points per game (0.93) and listed third in total points. He tallied 24 shots during the season for Coach Chris Kennedy.
His best game came on October 7, 1992, when he scored two goals and assisted on the game winner for five points, as JCSC blanked Rutgers-Newark, 3-0. He added single goals against New York Tech, William Paterson College (now WPU), SUNY-Old Westbury, and Trenton State College (now The College of New Jersey).
He saw action in only seven games in 1993 for Kennedy, while battling an ankle injury and was limited to two games in 1994 for Carlos Curling. He stopped playing collegiately in 1994 to help Lyons train the women as a volunteer assistant coach and complete his education.
He has continued to play since college, most recently for the RexPlex Indoor Soccer league from 2000-04. He also played in the semi-pro Garden State South league from 1996-99. He was a member of the Garden State North club from 1993-94, and the Eagles Indoor Soccer League (1989-97).
A 1987 graduate of Bayonne High School, Bielan was a four-year varsity letterwinner for Bees’ coach Connie Gallagher. He was selected All-Hudson County in 1986.
When not saving lives or coaching soccer, he has also served as a home instruction teacher for the Bayonne Board of Education. He has been a volunteer for the New Jersey Special Olympics since 1994.
Born November 10, 1969, Bielan resides in Bayonne with his wife Filomena and two daughters, Taylor Rose, 4, and Kayla Giovanna, 2.
