Washington Township High School boys soccer coach Shane Snyder (right) shakes hands with senior Ajani Dwyer following the Minutemen’s loss to Princeton in the state Group IV semifinals in 2023, Snyder’s last season as coach.
During Shane Snyder’s 14 years leading the Washington Township High School boys soccer team, he and his Minutemen received many accolades.
The former coach now has another: He was recently named a 2024 inductee into the New Jersey State Coaches’ Association Hall of Fame, joining 16 other members of the most recent class. Snyder – who stepped down as coach after the fall 2023 season – will be honored by the hall at its annual banquet on Sunday, Jan. 12, at the Pines Manor in Edison.Â
The former coach capped his final season by leading his team to a South Jersey Group IV sectional championship, a Tri-County Conference Royal Division title, and a runner-up finish in the South Jersey Coaches Association tournament.
Snyder’s career record of 241-52-19 includes three state titles, seven sectional crowns, three Coaches Tournament championships and eight conference crowns. The three state titles and seven sectional crowns were a first in the history of the program.
After the 2023 season, Snyder explained to his wife the decision to make that year his last. They kept it a secret, which meant bottling up any concerns about how Snyder’s final chapter would be written.
“I’ll be honest, it was the most stressful I’ve ever been,” Snyder said at the time in a district press release. “The decision was already made. I was stepping down no matter what. But I really wanted to go out on a good note, and that put a lot of stress on me.”
Snyder continues his role as a special education teacher at the high school and will maintain his role as head boys golf coach in the spring. He also led the high-school’s girls soccer program from 2003 to 2009. Snyder’s teams went 91-40-7, giving him 332 wins pitchside.
