Coaching Staff
Kat Stratton
Assistant Soccer Coach
Kat Stratton joined the Bulldog soccer program on Feb. 18, 2020, as a volunteer assistant coach working with State’s goalkeepers. Stratton came to Starkville from Mississippi College in Clinton, Mississippi, where she held the same role.
In 2022, Stratton's keepers finished with the most shutouts in a season (10) in school history. Maddy Anderson also set multiple records in goal for the Dawgs. She set the MSU record for saves in a season (9) and Goals Against Average (0.64).
In 2021, the goalkeepers recorded four shutouts throughout the season, including one in conference play (Kentucky). They ahad 65 saves on the season, and only allowed 19 goals.
Her first year with the Bulldogs' keepers yielded four shutouts, three in a row in the spring season, with a freshman and redshirt freshman in the net. Maddy Anderson saw the vast majority of the time in goal, recording 44 saves in her 1,073 minutes. She earned Defensive Player of the Week honors from the SEC as well as TopDrawerSoccer's team of the week accolades. In the four-game spring, Stratton's netminders held steady, allowing only one goal while the front line produced 11.
In addition to her goalkeeper responsibilities, she helped with scouting and game day operations at Mississippi College. The Choctaws won the 2019 Gulf South Conference championship, and goalkeeper Gabby Kayser was a D2CCA First Team All-South Region and First Team All-Gulf South selection under Stratton’s tutelage.
While coaching at Mississippi College, she has also served as the goalkeeper director and head coach of the U11 and U12 squads at the Brilla JUNIORS club since August 2018.
Stratton was a standout goalkeeper at the University of Alabama for five years and was named team captain as a senior. She earned Third Team All-South Region honors as a junior and finished third in the SEC in saves (91) fourth in save percentage (.805), fifth in saves per game (4.79) and seventh in both goals against average (1.14) and shutouts (5) that year.
The Tupelo, Mississippi, native finished her career second in the program record books in goals against average (1.31) and total shutouts (12), third in career wins (22), fourth in save percentage (.753) and sixth in saves (201). On Aug. 27, 2017, she posted a shutout victory over then-No. 4 Florida State for the Tide’s first win against a top-10 opponent in program history.
While attending Alabama, she worked the Roll Tide Soccer Academy for three summers before offering individual skill lessons in the Birmingham area for her final semester of classes once her eligibility was exhausted.
As a club player, Stratton was selection to the Region III Olympic Development Program team for five consecutive years, traveling to Costa Rica, Germany and France for international competition. In 2009 and 2010, she earned spots on the U.S. U14 and U15 National Teams.
Stratton grew up as a Mississippi State fan as her mother and brothers are all alumni. Most notably, her brother Chris played baseball for the Diamond Dawgs for three years before he was selected in the first round of the 2012 MLB Draft by the San Francisco Giants. He now pitches for the St. Louis Cardinals.
Henry Zapata
Assistant Soccer Coach
Henry Zapata, a veteran of collegiate soccer coaching with more than a decade of experience at Division I schools across the country, was hired as an assistant coach at Mississippi State on Jan. 29, 2025. Zapata’s primary responsibility on the staff is to tutor the Bulldog defenders while being heavily involved in recruiting activities, particularly among the junior college ranks.
Zapata most recently coached at Texas State where he spent three seasons from 2022-24. In his final season, Texas State reached the Sun Belt Conference Tournament championship match, losing by one goal to JMU. That came on the heels of a five-match shutout streak to close the regular season and carry the Bobcats through the tournament. With his assistance, four players earned all-conference recognition, the most for the program since 2018.
The Bobcats won 12 matches in two of his three seasons in San Marcos, which were just two shy of the program’s single-season record. The program was on a constant rise, tying atop the conference’s western division in the standings in Year 1, winning its first conference tournament match since 2018 in Year 2 and finally reaching the conference tournament championship match in Year 3.
Zapata helped coach an offense that set a team record with 37 assists while scoring 32 goals in 2023. In his first year in San Marcos, Texas State netted 28 goals in the campaign, its highest scoring output since 2018.
Zapata served on the Iowa State staff in 2021 where he was also the Cyclones’ recruiting coordinator. Iowa State went undefeated in its final five games of the year, which stood as its longest unbeaten streak since 2010.
Prior to his time in Ames, Zapata served as the associate head coach for four years at Lamar. He helped guide the Cardinals to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances and the three winningest seasons (2017, 2018, 2019) in program history, including a historic 18-win campaign in 2017.
Following a two-win season in 2016, the Cardinals made a remarkable turnaround in 2017, tying the NCAA record for the largest single-season win improvement. Zapata was tasked with implementing the tactical and technical training for defenders with the Cardinals. Under his leadership, the Cardinals posted a school-record 0.90 goals against average, recorded 10 shutouts and secured their first-ever NCAA Tournament berth. Two of his defenders and the Cardinals’ goalkeeper earned all-conference honors.
During Lamar's historic 2017 season, the Cardinals finished with an 18-4-1 overall record and a 10-1-0 mark in the Southland Conference, setting new school records for both total wins and conference victories. In 2019, the Cardinals won their second Southland Conference regular-season title and claimed another SLC Tournament championship. Lamar finished the regular season with a 16-7 record and a 10-1 mark in the Southland Conference.
Zapata served as an assistant coach at Elon University in 2015, where he led goalkeeper training. Under his guidance, the team achieved a 421-minute scoreless streak and recorded four straight shutouts for the first time in the program's Division I history. Along the way, the Phoenix totaled eight shutouts for the season.
Zapata spent two years (2013-14) on the women's soccer staff at Georgia as a volunteer assistant coach. While in Athens, Zapata contributed to securing an NCAA Tournament berth in 2014. That season, the Bulldogs climbed as high as No. 14 in the rankings and three players earned All-SEC honors. With Zapata overseeing the goalkeepers in 2013, Georgia recorded eight consecutive shutouts and finished with 11 on the season.
Prior to his tenure in the SEC, Zapata coached at the College of Charleston, where he spent two seasons and saw four players earn all-conference recognition, and Illinois. He also coached club soccer in the states of South Carolina and Illinois while on staff.
His career began as a volunteer assistant at Illinois, his alma mater, and the Little Illini Soccer Club where he was the goalkeeper trainer. Zapata graduated from Illinois in 2008 with a degree in broadcast journalism. He completed his master’s degree in sport management from the same institution in 2011.
Jonathan Garbar
Assistant Soccer Coach
Jonathan Garbar was hired as an assistant coach at Mississippi State on January 23, 2025. At MSU, he is primarily responsible for connected team play and handles the majority of State’s international recruiting.
Garbar came to Starkville on the heels of being named the Conference USA Coach of the Year while leading FIU to both regular season and conference tournament championships in 2024. In his tenure with the Panthers, he transformed the program from a 2-15 record the year before he arrived to a 13-5-2 record in his final campaign and returned the squad to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 13 years. Along the way, FIU posted the largest RPI improvement in the nation from the 2021 to 2024 seasons.
In his final season in Miami, Garbar’s team produced a top-10 goal scoring season in program history, netting 41 goals, while allowing just 18, the second-fewest allowed in school history.
The 2023 campaign saw a vast improvement for FIU, and one of its best seasons as a member of Conference USA. The Panthers won eight matches, the most in a single season since 2013 and matching their win total from the previous three seasons combined. The offense shined, scoring 38 goals, FIU’s highest scoring output as a member of C-USA. Defensively, FIU made strong strides, conceding just 19 goals to their opponents, its lowest total in more than a decade. The Panthers received a program record seven All-Conference USA selections, and their first selection to the First Team since 2015.
Prior to FIU, Garbar spent four years at Division II Franklin Pierce University, after taking over as the head coach in 2017. He coached three seasons due to the 2020 season being canceled by COVID-19. Garbar earned a 34-15-6 mark with the Ravens during his tenure, including a 16-2-2 mark in 2018 that culminated with a conference title, the program’s first since 2006, and trip to the NCAA Division II Tournament. The Ravens finished 2018 ranked No. 20 in the final United Soccer Coaches poll, while climbing as high as No. 7 during the season. Garbar was named the Northeast 10 Coach of the Year that season.
While at Franklin Pierce, Garbar saw seven athletes receive all-conference nods, five earn all-region selection and three be named All-Americans. He tutored one conference Player of the Year and one Defensive Player of the Year. Following their careers with the Ravens, four of Garbar’s players went onto sign first division professional contracts in Europe and South America.
His first collegiate coaching job was as the head coach at Monroe College from 2012-2016. He took over in the program's first year after elevating to the Division I level of the NJCAA and promptly rattled off a 72-7-4 record. Garbar's tenure at Monroe was highlighted by a NJCAA National Championship in 2014, as well as a national semifinal appearance in 2015. The 2014 national title earned him National Coach of the Year honors from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.
While at Monroe, Garbar saw 31 players promoted from the NJCAA ranks to the NCAA, which was more than any other junior college in the country. Five of his former student athletes went on to play at schools in the Power Five. Internationally, his athletes represented England, Spain, Brazil and Croatia on national teams.
Garbar has deep recruiting ties to Central and South America and is fluent in both Spanish and Portuguese. He previously served as an assistant coach with the Puerto Rican Women’s National Team. His duties with the national squad included overseeing northeast identification and recruitment. While at Monroe College, he served as the institution's Director for South American Recruitment from 2013-2015, and prior to that Garbar worked from 2010-2012 creating a program specifically targeted towards bringing international students to Monroe College.
A native of Maplewood, New Jersey, Garbar graduated from Delaware in 2002 with a degree in liberal arts, before earning his master's degree in teaching from Pace University in 2007.
Alyssa D'Aloise
Director of Soccer Operations
Ahead of the 2023 Season, Alyssa D'Aloise was named Director of Soccer Operations
D'Aloise, a native of Dallas, Texas, spent the last three seasons of her playing career as the team's captain after a vote by her teammates. While wearing Maroon and White, she played and started in 45 matches in the midfield scoring two career goals. She was a perfect 3-0 against Ole Miss in her career, helping Mississippi State earn two shutouts in those contests.
She was named to the 2022 Academic All-District team with a perfect 4.0 GPA and is a two-time graduate of Mississippi State. She earned her bachelor's in kinesiology - clinical exercise physiology and her master's in business administration and was a member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll.
In her final season in Starkville, D'Aloise logged over 1,500 minutes on the pitch and helped lead the Bulldogs to one of their best seasons in program history. The Bulldogs made the NCAA Tournament for just the second time, earning their first tournament win while also earning their highest ranking in the United Soccer Coaches Poll in program history (No. 21). Their 21-win campaign also tied for the second-most wins in a single-season.
During her Bulldog career, D'Aloise helped State win 23 matches, earn 14 shutout victories (18 total shutouts), and played at least 90 minutes 18 times.
Head Coach James Armstrong on Alyssa D'Aloise
"Alyssa [D'Aloise] was a standout both on and off the field during her time in Starkville. She was voted team captain all three years, graduating with an undergrad in Kinesiology and a master's in business administration. We couldn't be more excited to keep her in Starkville to see her thrive in this new role and see the impact she will have with our student-athletes on a daily basis."
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