FAIRFAX, Va. – Tony Paolini joins the George Mason University men's soccer program as an assistant coach, head coach Rich Costanzo announced.

After establishing himself as one of the emerging young coaches in collegiate soccer through his work in recruiting, player development, performance analysis, and opponent scouting, Paolini will enter his first year with the Green and Gold for the 2026 season.
 
Paolini brings a modern, player-centered approach to coaching that combines high-level recruiting with data analytics, video analysis, and individualized player development. 
 
"We are excited to welcome Tony to the staff," Costanzo said. "Tony is an ambitious young coach and a proven recruiter of top talent from his time at Fairfield. We look forward to having Tony in Fairfax and continuing to push our program forward!"

Prior to George Mason, Paolini spent two seasons at Fairfield University, where he served as an assistant coach with primary responsibilities in recruiting, opponent scouting, video analysis, data analytics, and player development.
 
During his time with the Stags, Paolini helped recruit and develop several of the top young players in the MAAC Conference, including two TopDrawerSoccer Top 100 freshmen: Alex Vaz (#50 nationally) and Sean Albritton (#12 nationally).
 
Albritton had a standout freshman season, earning All-MAAC Second Team honors while collecting MAAC Rookie of the Week awards and a MAAC Offensive Player of the Week honor. He was also selected to the TopDrawerSoccer Best XI Freshman Team and earned an invitation to the Costa Rica U20 National Team camp following his successful debut season.  Vaz established himself as one of the conference's top players, earning First Team All-MAAC honors and a MAAC Rookie of the Week award during his freshman campaign.
 
Paolini also played a key role in the development of Pipeloore Olanrewaju, who earned All-MAAC Second Team recognition and MAAC Rookie of the Week honors.
 
The Fairfield staff enjoyed significant collective success during the 2025 season, with seven student-athletes earning All-MAAC honors while 11 players were named to the MAAC All-Academic Team in 2025.
 
Before arriving at Fairfield, Paolini served as the top assistant coach at the University of Mount Saint Vincent, where he helped build one of Division III's top defensive units.  The Dolphins climbed as high as 10th nationally in goals against average before ultimately finishing 18th in the country with a 0.68 goals against average through 20 matches.
 
During his tenure at Mount Saint Vincent, he helped guide three student-athletes to Skyline Conference First Team honors, including Ian Lamas, who finished third nationally in shots on goal per game (2.93).  Justin Betancourt and Donovan Speer also earned All-Skyline First Team recognition in 2023.
 
As a coach, Paolini has developed a reputation for blending modern performance analysis with a holistic approach to player development.  His expertise spans recruiting, talent identification, opponent scouting, video analysis, data interpretation, and the creation of individualized development strategies that maximize player growth and team performance.
 
A former NCAA Division I student-athlete with professional playing experience, Paolini combines firsthand competitive insight with an analytical foundation to help student-athletes reach their full potential both on and off the field.