Kienan.ODoherty@pressdemocrat.com

Sonoma State University will host a celebration of life Saturday afternoon for longtime men’s soccer coach Marcus Ziemer, who died last month while overseas in Germany.

The event begins at 3 p.m. at what’s known as the old gymnasium on the university’s Rohnert Park campus, not far from the soccer field where Ziemer built his legacy over 35 years in charge of the SSU team.

Ziemer died March 17 after suffering a traumatic brain injury following a scooter crash while in Dortmund, Germany, to watch his daughter Taylor play for the FC Köln club. He was 63.Ziemer was the eldest of four brothers in a family closely intertwined with the sport of soccer. He ranked seventh in all-time men’s soccer wins in NCAA Division II, holding a record of 353-192-66 and a winning percentage of 63.2.

Ziemer led the Seawolves to the 1991 national championship game in his inaugural season as head coach, then just 25 years old. A little over 11 years later, he won the program’s lone national championship and was named national coach of the year.

He won eight conference titles at SSU, with his teams appearing 15 times in the California Collegiate Athletic Association tournament in the past 25 years.

Along the way, he became a well-known and beloved figure in the world of soccer in Sonoma County and beyond. He was also a leader in the fight to restore sports at SSU after his team and the rest of the athletic department was eliminated in sweeping budget cuts last year.

Family, friends and former colleagues are scheduled to speak as part of Saturday’s celebration of life. The Ziemer family expects a large crowd of more than 500.

Attendees are asked to RSVP to Gabby Ziemer at 707-953-1951 and indicate the number of people in their group.