Immaculata University

Immaculata, PA 19345

Pennsylvania Northeast

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Coaches

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Nicole Barretta

Immaculata University Director of Athletics and Recreation, Paul Murphy, announced on Tuesday morning the hiring of Nicole Barretta as the head women’s lacrosse coach for the upcoming 2021 season and the 11th coach in program history. Barretta steps into the role after spending last season as the Assistant Coach at Stockton University in Galloway, New Jersey, on the heels of a successful playing career that saw her star at nearby Temple University and perennial-power Stony Brook.

During Coach Barretta’s first season at Immaculata, she led the women’s lacrosse team to a 2-7 season. Coach Barretta’s first win as head coach came on March 10th, 2021 at Lancaster Bible College with a final score of 14-7. In her first season as head coach, she mentored three Atlantic East All-Conference players in Molly Gallagher, Kaitlyn Klitchko, and Maddy Terry. Molly Gallagher earned first team recognitions while Kaitlyn Klitchko and Maddy Terry both earned second team recognitions.

During her playing career, Barretta was a three-time Big East All-Academic team selection and a multi-time Big East Weekly Award recipient earning Rookie and Attacker of the Week honors throughout her career at Temple. At the conclusion of her time as an Owl, Barretta had scored 56 goals and added 17 assists for a total of 73 points over the course of her 46 career games with her best season coming as a junior when she scored 21 goals and added six assists for 27 points on the year. At Stony Brook, Barretta appeared in 17 games, making six starts as she tallied 26 goals, two assists, 18 ground balls, and eight caused turnovers to help lead the Seawolves to their seventh consecutive America East Conference Championship. Barretta also scored the OT game-winner in the NCAA Tournament vs James Madison before falling to eventual National Champion, Maryland in the second round of the Tournament. As the Assistant Coach at Stockton, Barretta assisted in leading the program in the rigorous NJAC Conference as she played a role in creating practice plans, reviewing game film, and recruiting.

Barretta earned her Bachelor of Arts in Sport and Recreation Management from Temple in May 2018 before receiving her Master’s in Higher Education Administration from Stony Brook in December 2019.

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Matt Justice

Justice, a 2016 Marymount University graduate, joins Immaculata following a successful stint as a Graduate Assistant Coach at Eastern University where he worked with the Offense and Goalies. Prior to his stint at Eastern, Justice spent two years at Division II Institution, Davis & Elkins where he was the Offensive Coordinator for the 2016-17 season before being named Head Coach for the 2017-18 season. In the 2017-18 season, Justice had the distinction of being the youngest head men’s lacrosse coach across all NCAA Divisions.

During his first full season, Coach Justice led the men’s lacrosse team to the team’s first playoff appearance since the 2011 season, finishing the season with a 3-6 record. Coach Justice mentored two Atlantic East All-Conference players in Bobby Bausman (first team) and Steve Long (second team). Coach Justice also became the first coach in Mighty Mac history to have coached a player to USILA Scholar All-American status in Bobby Bausman.

Justice got his interim label removed on May 6, 2020 and was named head coach following his first year on campus. The Macs improved during the shortened 2020 season and ranked third in goals per game (9.75) and assists per game (5.25). Under Justice, Steve Long ranked second in the Atlantic East with 3.5 goals per game while Denton States led the league with 16 saves per game. He earned his first win at Immaculata as the Macs beat Albright 13-10 on March 5th. Long was named Atlantic East Player of the Week for his seven-goal effort in the win.

During his time at Marymount, Justice was a four-year member of the team earning the start in every game that he played in while also serving as a Captain during his senior (2015-16) season. Justice also ranked in the top-five on the team in scoring each of his last three seasons with the program with his best season coming during his sophomore year when he accounted for 32 points with 20 goals and 12 assists. Justice also ranked second on the team in goal scoring at the end of his junior and senior seasons scoring 23 and 20 goals, respectively.

Justice earned his Bachelor of Arts in Special Education and Core Curriculum Instruction for Grades K-12 from Marymount University in December 2016 and recently earned his Masters in Organizational Leadership at Eastern University.