RICK SOWELL
20 year Division I Mens Lacrosse Coach
One of only three Division I coaches to take three different teams to the NCAA tournament.
My passion for the last 20 years has been to help lacrosse players reach their athletic potential. I am excited to be able to share my knowledge and coaching acumen with dedicated middle and high school students.
In 2018, Navy captured the program’s eighth Patriot League regular-season crown after posting a 7-1 record to complement a 9-5 overall mark. Among the season’s highlights, the Class of 2018 became the first class to go 4-0 against Army in the annual Star Game since the Class of 2007. In 2010, Sowell led Stony Brook to the program’s first America East regular-season title, a school-record 13 wins, a national ranking as high as No. 6 and a 9-7 victory over Denver in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Seawolves were just a game away from advancing to the school’s first-ever final four, narrowly losing in to Virginia in the quarterfinals, 10-9. Stony Brook had four players earn All-America honors, including Kevin Crowley who was the school’s first First-Team All-American and was named the USILA Player of the Year.
Sowell, who was an assistant coach for the gold-medal winning Team USA at the 2010 World Championships in England, led Stony Brook to a 9-6 record in 2009 and a final ranking of No. 20 in the country. It marked the school’s first end-of-the-season national ranking. Stony Brook finished 4-1 in America East and stood as the regular season co-champions. Prior to Stony Brook, Sowell was tapped to head the rebirth of the St. John’s lacrosse program that had been dormant since 1995. Sowell had just one season to recruit before the Red Storm took the field in 2005.
Sowell was the head coach at Dartmouth from 1999-2003 and revived the Big Green program, taking the team from last place in the Ivy League to first. In his final season at Dartmouth in 2003, Sowell’s squad posted an 11-3 record and won the Ivy League with a 5-1 record. It was Dartmouth’s first Ivy League title since 1965 and just the third Ivy League title in school history. During the title run, the Big Green upset No. 2 Princeton marking the first time that Dartmouth had won at Princeton since 1958. Sowell was also named the NEILA Coach of the Year that season.
Sowell served as an assistant at Georgetown from 1990-98 where the Hoyas grew from an also-ran to a national contender. In 1998, the Hoyas finished 10-5 overall and advanced to the quarterfinal round of the NCAA’s.
Sowell’s coaching career began at Washington College in Chestertown, Md., where he helped guide the Shoremen to the NCAA Division III national title game in 1986 and the semifinal round in 1987.