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University of Virginia

Charlottesville, VA 22904
Virginia Northeast
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Sonia LaMonica

LaMonica takes over UVA’s storied program for the 2023-24 season after serving as the head women’s lacrosse coach at Towson for the last 14 seasons. At Towson, she amassed a 139-91 record and owns a 147-101 all-time coaching record after starting her head coaching career at Mount St. Mary’s for one season.


During her tenure at Towson, LaMonica led the Tigers to seven NCAA Tournament appearances and four Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Tournament Championships. She has been named the CAA Coach of the Year five times.


Towson finished first or second in the CAA in 10 of her 14 seasons at the helm and made nine CAA tournament championship game appearances, including six-straight. LaMonica has coached six players to All-America honors and has had numerous All-CAA and All-Region honorees.


LaMonica consistently challenged her teams with tough schedules against top-ranked opponents. Towson finished .500 or better in 12 of the 14 seasons she oversaw the program, with one of the two being cut short due to the pandemic.


A native of Darlington, South Australia, LaMonica (pronounced La – MAHN – ick – uh) was named the 10th head coach in the history of the Towson women’s lacrosse program after the 2010 season. She returned to lead the Tigers after a one-year stint as the head coach at Mount St. Mary’s.


As the Mountaineers’ head coach, LaMonica led Mount St. Mary’s to an 8-9 record in 2010 and a berth in the Northeast Conference (NEC) semifinals. She coached five players who earned All-NEC honors.


Prior to becoming the Mountaineers’ head coach, LaMonica spent two seasons as a member of Missy Doherty’s staff at Towson and helped the Tigers win a pair of Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) championships.


Before joining the Tigers’ staff, LaMonica was an assistant coach at the University of Denver, helping the Pioneers to a 15-5 record during the 2006 season. She coached the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) Player and Rookie of the Year along with three all-conference selections and the program’s first IWLCA All-West/Midwest region honoree.


LaMonica is also the head coach of the Women’s Professional Lacrosse League’s (WPLL) Baltimore Brave. LaMonica led the Brave to the league championship in 2019 and guided the team to the title game in the inaugural season a year earlier.


In addition to her success as a coach, LaMonica is a member of the Australian National Team. She helped Australia win the gold medal at the 2005 World Cup Championship and a silver medal at the 2009 World Cup Championship. In the summer of 2013, LaMonica played a key role in helping Australia earn a bronze medal at the World Cup Championship in Canada.


Named to the 2005 IFWLA All-World Team, she was also a member of the U-19 Australian National Team that won the silver medal at the 1999 World Championships and was also the recipient of the U21 South Australian Sportswoman of the Year award.


A 2003 graduate of Maryland, LaMonica was a three-year starter for the Terrapins. She earned first team All-America honors and was a candidate for the Tewaaraton Trophy during her senior season after leading Maryland to the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) championship. A team captain during her senior season, she was a member of three ACC championship teams and helped the Terrapins win the 2000 and 2001 NCAA titles.


LaMonica scored 111 goals in her college career, including 49 goals as a senior, along with 55 assists.


Formerly Sonia Judd, LaMonica is married to former Maryland men’s lacrosse standout Michael LaMonica. The couple resides in Parkton, Md., with their sons, Luca and Bodhi and daughter, Marley.


Michael LaMonica, a member of the Towson coaching staff, will join Sonia as an assistant coach for the Cavaliers.

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Michael LaMonica

LaMonica joins Virginia for the 2023-24 season as an assistant coach after spending 13 seasons at Towson as an assistant coach.


In 2022, LaMonica helped lead the team in one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the country, featuring nine teams mentioned in the ILWomen/IWLCA poll at some point over the season. In CAA play, the team dominated, going 5-1 to clinch the No. 1 seed in the 2022 CAA Tournament for the first time since 2014.


Among several career and season bests, LaMonica guided offensive threats Blair Pearre and Kaitlin Thornton as they scored 100 goals to move up on the program’s top 20 all-time scoring list. He also led Blair Pearre (first team All-CAA), Kerri Thornton (first team All-CAA), Milana Zizakovic (second team All-CAA/CAA All-Rookie), Halley Koras (CAA All-Rookie) to conference postseason praise.


In 2021, LaMonica helped converted transfer Nikki Sliwak to attack. The graduate student responded by finishing second on the team in scoring with 55 points (31g, 24a). She scored a career-high five goals against William & Mary, handed out a career-best four assists two times and was the only player to have a point in all 18 games.


During his Towson tenure, LaMonica has coached four First-Team Colonial Athletic Association attackers: Andi Raymond (2012-204), Ashleigh Rohrback (2013-14), Natalie Sulmonte (2017-19) and Emily Gillingham (2018). Carly Tellekamp scored 100 goals over a two-year period (2017-18). Sam Brookhart set the single-season assist mark with 55 helpers in 2017 and sits atop the all-time assist list with 97 helpers, six more than Rohrback.


The 2018 season saw a 16-5 record as LaMonica helped lead the Tigers to victory over No. 4 Penn State, No. 6 Florida and No. 25 Johns Hopkins. Towson fell to James Madison in overtime in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Championship and went on to play two rounds in the NCAA Tournament with his guidance.


LaMonica’s fifth season with the Tigers full-time was highlighted by No. 10 Notre Dame and No. 19 Elon as well as a first-round appearance in the NCAA Tournament.


In the first four years spent as an assistant, LaMonica helped guide an offense that averaged 9.5 goals per game while capturing three CAA titles and making three NCAA Tournament appearances, including a second round game against Penn in 20116.


LaMonica was a four-year starter at midfield for the University of Maryland from 1999 to 2002. He earned All-Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) honors as a junior and finished his career with 68 goals and 14 assists. LaMonica also had 90 career ground balls and five game winning goals.


LaMonica continued his lacrosse career after graduating from Maryland. He was a member of Major League Lacrosse for two seasons, playing for the New Jersey Pride, Denver Outlaws and San Francisco Dragons.


LaMonica also has international experience as he helped the United States Under-19 National Team win a world championship in Australia during the summer of 1999. He finished the seven-game tournament with five goals and five assists. LaMonica served as an assistant coach at the Women’s World Cup in Canada during the summer of 2013. He helped his wife, Sonia, and team Australia earn a bronze medal at the event.


LaMonica brings a wealth of coaching experience to the Tigers. He served as the offensive coordinator at Calvert Hall College High School immediately after graduating from Maryland. He was also a volunteer assistant for the Mount St. Mary’s women’s lacrosse team in 2010 and a coach for the LXM Pro Tour Baltimore in 2011.


LaMonica is the older brother of former Tiger women’s lacrosse player Jackie LaMonica and the son of former Towson gymnastics assistant coach Lynda Filbert.


He is married to the current Cavalier women’s lacrosse coach, Sonia LaMonica, and the couple has a pair of young sons, Luca and Bodhi and a daughter, Marley.

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Kerrigan Miller

Kerrigan Miller joined Sonia LaMonica’s staff as an assistant coach for Virginia women’s lacrosse in July 2023.


Miller spent the 2023 season with LaMonica as an assistant coach at Towson, helping the Tigers to an 11-7 season. Prior to joining LaMonica’s staff at Towson she was a graduate assistant and director of operations for the undefeated national champion North Carolina Tar Heels in 2022. During that run, she helped guide UNC to a 22-0 record with a 66.6 percent draw control win rate.


A former No. 1 recruit in the nation from Bayport-Blue Point High School in Bayport, N.Y., and two-time Pac-12 Midfielder of the Year, Miller spent the 2021 season leading UNC to Championship Weekend in Towson. Starting all 21 games in the UNC midfield, Miller notched 21 goals and 41 draw controls, helping the team to a 20-1 record.


Currently, Miller is playing professionally in Athletes Unlimited and has been a member of the USA Women’s Senior National Training Team the past two years.


Previous to UNC, Miller was the top recruit in the nation in the high school class of 2016, heading to USC. There she earned 2018 and 2019 Pac-12 Midfielder of the Year, 2019 Pac-12 Tournament MVP and 2017 MPSF Freshman of the Year, twice being named an All-American. Leading USC to the 2019 Pac-12 Tournament and regular-season title, Miller tallied 104 goals, 120 caused turnovers, 158 grounds balls and 157 draw controls in her career for the Women of Troy.


Miller earned her undergraduate degree at USC in 2020 with a bachelor of arts in communications, minoring in sports media industries. She earned her master’s degree in sport administration from North Carolina in 2022.

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Caylee Waters

Caylee Waters joined the Virginia women’s lacrosse staff as an assistant coach in July of 2023.


Waters is currently a US National Team member and competes professionally with Athletes Unlimited. She is a two-time National Goalie of the Year and was part of the 2016 National Championship team with North Carolina. Waters also split time in goal during Team USA’s gold medal run to win the 2022 World Cup.


Waters joins LaMonica’s staff after serving as a volunteer assistant coach for Army West Point, where she helped lead the team to its first NCAA Tournament berth in program history. Prior to that, she served as a volunteer assistant coach for one year at her alma-mater UNC. That season the Tar Heels won their third NCAA Championship in program history. Waters started her coaching career as a volunteer assistant coach at Stanford during the 2018 season. That season the Cardinal posted a 15-5 record and won the Pac-12.


A Darien, Conn., native, Waters was a two-time All-American and four-time All-ACC selection. She still owns the single season record in saves (177). She finished her career with 462 saves and a 49-9 record in goal for the Tar Heels.


Waters graduated from North Carolina with a bachelor’s degree in media and journalism in 2017.

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Lars Tiffany

Two-time ACC Coach of the Year Lars Tiffany enters his eighth season as Virginia men’s lacrosse head coach in 2024 after being named the program’s 17th head coach on June 21, 2016. Tiffany came to UVA with 12 years of head coaching experience after a 10-year stint at his alma mater, Brown University (2007-16) and a two-year stop at Stony Brook University (2005-06).


Delivering two NCAA Championships to Charlottesville in back-to-back tries in 2019 and 2021, Tiffany is one of the most successful and respected head coaches in the game of men’s lacrosse. He was bestowed ACC Coach of the Year in 2019 and 2022 after guiding the Cavaliers to ACC Championships in both years. Tiffany is one of just three head coaches in program history to record 80 wins. Over the course of his head coaching career, Tiffany has mentored 39 All-Americans and 25 PLL draft picks, including 14 selections from UVA.


In 2023, Tiffany steered the Cavaliers to their third Championship Weekend appearance in the last four NCAA Tournaments. Virginia finished with a 13-4 overall record, including 4-2 in ACC play with a pair of wins over the eventual national champions in Notre Dame. Nine Cavaliers were named USILA All-Americans, including three first-team selections. Virginia’s nine All-Americans led all Division I programs nationally. Among those first-team selections was attackman Connor Shellenberger, who became the program’s second three-time first team All-American and was a Tewaaraton Award Finalist for the second consecutive year. Shellenberger was also voted to the 2023 NCAA All-Tournament Team selection after leading all players in assists (11) and points (22) and tied for first in goals (11). Additionally, the Cavaliers led the nation in ground balls per game, which marked the seventh season in the last eight a Tiffany-coached team did so. Thomas McConvey was named the recipient of the Lt. j.g. Donald MacLaughlin Jr. Outstanding Midfielder Award, which is bestowed annually to the nation’s top midfielder. McConvey is the second player under Tiffany’s tutelage to lay claim to the MacLaughlin Award, joining former UVA long-stick midfielder Jared Conners who did so in 2021.


For the second time of his career, Tiffany was voted ACC Coach of the Year by his peers in 2022 after leading the Cavaliers to a share of the program’s 19 ACC title. After going 8-0 at Klöckner Stadium in the regular season, Virginia went on the road to knock off Brown, Tiffany’s alma mater and former post, in the First Round of the NCAA, which marked the Cavaliers’ ninth consecutive NCAA Tournament win. In addition to Shellenberger garnering his first Tewaaraton Award Finalist honor, the Cavaliers dominated ACC postseason awards. Defenseman Cole Kastner and goalie Matthew Nunes were tabbed the ACC’s Defensive Player and Freshman of the Year, respectively, under the guidance of Tiffany and his staff. Furthermore, Matt Moore, who concluded his career as the program’s all-time points leader, became the third recipient under Tiffany to receive the Senior CLASS Award.


After Virginia went 4-2 overall in 2020 before the onset of the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) ultimately forced the cancellation of the rest of the season, Tiffany and the fourth-seeded Cavaliers won the program’s seventh NCAA title in 2021 after a triumphant 17-16 victory over third-seeded Maryland. UVA’s 2021 title marked the first time in program history it won back-to-back national championships, having also done so in 2019. Under the direction of Tiffany in 2021, Virginia became just the seventh men’s lacrosse program in Division-I history to win back-to-back national championships and first Division I men’s lacrosse program to win six straight NCAA finals games (1999, 2003, 2006, 2011, 2019 and 2021). Shellenberger was crowned the Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA Tournament. In addition to Conners laying claim to the Donald MacLaughlin Award, UVA’s nine USILA All-Americans tied for the most by any Division I program nationally.


Upon serving as UVA head coach for just two seasons, Tiffany and his staff guided the Cavaliers to the program’s sixth NCAA Championship in 2019 – its first since 2011. Virginia finished with an overall record of 17-7, which tied the program’s single season wins record. Goalie Alex Rode was crowned the Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA Tournament, a four-win performance that was highlighted by 18 saves against Duke in the semifinals. UVA also won its first ACC title since 2010 after defeating Notre Dame, 10-4, in the ACC Tournament championship game, which was held at Klöckner Stadium. Conners, Ryan Conrad and Dox Aitken were tabbed first-team All-Americans. Conrad became the second player under Tiffany to be name the recipient of the Senior CLASS Award. He was also named MVP of the ACC Tournament and an NCAA All-Tournament selection. Conrad went on to be drafted No. 2 overall by the Atlas in the inaugural PLL Draft, which tied for second highest MLL/PLL draft pick in UVA history.


After missing the NCAA Tournament in the previous two seasons, Tiffany returned the Cavaliers to the big dance in 2018, his second year as UVA head coach. In addition to leading the nation in ground balls, Virginia finished fifth nationally in assists and seventh in scoring offense. Michael Kraus became the third player in program history to tally 80 points in a single season after finishing with 83, while Aitken represented Virginia as a USILA First Team All-American after setting a then-program record with 51 points.


In his first year at the helm, Tiffany returned the Cavaliers to their winning ways (8-7) after a losing season in 2016. The UVA offense led the ACC and finished third in the nation in goals, assists and points. Aitken shattered the program’s freshman midfielder record of 29 goals in just eight games and tallied 40 points. Kraus was named ACC Freshman of the Year and the only rookie on the All-ACC team after leading the Hoos with 34 goals and 56 points.


Prior to his tenure at Virginia, Tiffany transformed Brown into one of the nation’s premier programs. He led the Bears to Championship Weekend in Philadelphia in 2016 behind a program-record 16 wins and the nation’s No. 1 scoring offense. Attackman Dylan Molloy was crowned the recipient of the Tewaaraton Award and the nation’s most outstanding attackman in 2016. Additionally, Jack Kelly was named the nation’s most outstanding goalie and the recipient of the 2016 Senior CLASS Award. Under Tiffany’s guidance, Brown had a program-record eight USILA All-Americans in 2016. Tiffany finished with an overall record of 95-56 in 10 seasons at his alma mater.


Brown’s historic success in 2016 was the culmination of four Ivy League titles in 2008, 2010, 2015 and 2016 and three NCAA Tournament berths in 2009, 2015 and 2016. Tiffany and his staff are widely credited with changing the modern landscape of college lacrosse after implementing a unique fastbreak-style of offense that finished fifth in the nation in goals per game in 2015. At Brown, Tiffany garnered back-to-back Ivy League Coach of the Year honors in 2015 and 2016. He was also named New England Coach of the Year four times (2008-09-15-16).


After inheriting a Brown program that went winless in Ivy League play in 2006, Tiffany coached the Bears to their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1997 before falling to Johns Hopkins in overtime in the first round of the 2009 NCAA Tournament. Tiffany’s 2008 squad captured a share of the Ivy League title with a 5-1 league mark and achieved an 11-3 record to earn the most wins in a single season by the Bears since 1994. In his first season at Brown in 2007, Tiffany turned the fortunes of the program in the right direction by guiding the Bears to a 7-7 record and a national ranking as high as No. 18.


Tiffany’s first head coaching stint was at Stony Brook during the 2005 and 2006 seasons, where he compiled an 18-13 overall record. He was named America East Coach of the Year in 2005 after the Seawolves cracked the top 20 for the first time in program history and led the nation in man-up offense. In 2006, his squad finished second in the America East with a 4-1 league mark and was ranked in the top 20 in two weekly polls.


Tiffany arrived at Stony Brook after successful stints at Penn State, Dartmouth, Washington & Lee and LeMoyne. He spent his four years at Penn State (2000-2004) as the top assistant under head coach Glenn Thiel, who previously served as UVA head coach from 1970-77 and guided the Cavaliers to their first NCAA title in 1972. At Penn State, Tiffany was involved in all facets of the lacrosse program as the team’s defensive and recruiting coordinator. In 2002, the Nittany Lions led the nation in man-down defense.


Prior to coaching at Penn State, Tiffany was an assistant coach at Dartmouth College, where he spent the 1999 and 2000 seasons under head coach Rick Sowell. In his two seasons as defensive coordinator, the Big Green’s goals allowed per game in Ivy League contests dropped from 15.3 to 9.0.


Tiffany was an assistant coach from 1997-98 at Washington & Lee University. In 1998, the Generals went 13-3 and advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament while finishing fifth in the USILA Division III national rankings.


Tiffany began his collegiate coaching career at LeMoyne College, where he served as an assistant coach of men’s lacrosse and co-head coach of the women’s lacrosse program from 1994-96.


A native of LaFayette, New York, Tiffany graduated from LaFayette High School where he lettered in football, basketball and lacrosse. Upon graduation from Brown, he taught Marine Science and Marine Biology and coached lacrosse and football at the Robert Louis Stevenson School in Pebble Beach, California from 1990-94.


A 1990 graduate of Brown, Tiffany was a two-time team captain and starter on defense for three years under the guidance of former Virginia head coach Dom Starsia, who served as head coach at Brown from 1982-92 before accepting the head coaching position at UVA. A Biology concentrator, Tiffany played on two Brown teams that advanced to the NCAA Tournament (1987 & 1990). He was co-MVP of the 1900 Brown squad that captured its first-ever NCAA playoff victory, a 12-9 victory over UMass. Tiffany capped his career by playing in the North-South Senior All-Star game in 1990.


Tiffany and his wife, Tara, reside in Charlottesville with their daughter, Charlotte.

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Kevin Cassese

Virginia men’s lacrosse head coach Lars Tiffany announced the hiring of Kevin Cassese (kah-CEASE) as the Cavaliers’ associate head coach and offensive coordinator on June 20, 2023. Cassese spent the last 16 seasons as the head coach of Lehigh University, where he became the school’s all-time winningest coach and guided the Mountain Hawks to three Patriot League titles.


“Once in a while, you come across a person who transcends the norms of your profession,” Tiffany said. “How can this one person continue to overachieve? Kevin Cassese is an innovator and expert technician on the lacrosse field. He is a great leader of both his men and family.


“The time I have shared with Kevin, starting in 2004 at Stony Brook and progressing over the past two decades with countless recruiting events, phone conversations, professional development sessions, family gatherings, et cetera, has cemented for me that there is none better than Kevin for grasping the critical aspects of this human endeavor called coaching. Kevin is masterful with forging the strongest of bonds that endure. I am thrilled Kevin will be joining Kip (Turner), Logan (Greco), and myself in Charlottesville. His impact will be felt quickly and continuously.”


“There is so much to love about UVA,” Cassese said. “It starts at the top with coach Lars Tiffany and athletic director Carla Williams. I cannot thank them enough for making this opportunity a reality for me and my family.”


“Lars gave me my first job as a Division I lacrosse coach when he was a first-year head coach at Stony Brook University in 2004-05. For 20 years, he has been a mentor, confidant, and great friend. Lars is the best in the business, and it is exciting to be reunited with him in this capacity. He has built a tremendous culture within the UVA program. The quality of men I will work with is second to none. Culture, character, and a championship tradition are all synonymous with UVA lacrosse and I cannot wait to contribute to that championship tradition.”


Cassese’s 136 career victories and 56.7 win percentage as Lehigh head coach are program bests. Cassese steered the Mountain Hawks to Patriot League regular-season and tournament titles in 2012, 2013 and 2021. During his tenure at Lehigh, the Mountain Hawks reached the Patriot League championship game six times and are the only team to qualify for the Patriot League Tournament in the last 10 consecutive years.


A total of 21 Lehigh players achieved USILA All-America status under Cassese’s tutelage, including 2021 first-team faceoff specialist Mike Sisselberger, who set the NCAA Division-I single season faceoff win percentage record (79.5). Amid the Mountain Hawks’ third conference title bid, Lehigh finished in the top-10 nationally in seven statistical categories, including seventh in assists (8.58), eighth in points (22.67) and ninth in scoring offense (14.08). Cassese’s man-up offense also led the nation in 2018 and in 2012.


Prior to serving as Lehigh head coach, Cassese was an assistant coach at his alma mater, Duke, from 2005-07. In 2007, Cassese and the Blue Devils reached the NCAA Championship game, which marked the program’s second national championship appearance. He also served as Duke’s interim head coach for part of the summer of 2006. Prior to coaching at Duke, Cassese’s was an assistant coach and offensive coordinator at Stony Brook in 2005, where he conducted the nation’s top man-up unit. Tiffany, Cassese and the Seawolves finished the season with a 10-6 overall record.


A National Lacrosse Hall of Fame class of 2018 inductee, Cassese enjoyed an illustrious playing career at Duke from 2000-03, where he was twice team captain and Tewaaraton Award finalist (2002-03), a three-time All-American (2001-03), and the recipient of the Lt. j.g. Donald MacLaughlin Jr. Outstanding Midfielder award (2002). He was named ACC Player of the Year in 2001 and garnered All-ACC honors three times (2001-03).


After his collegiate playing career, Cassese was selected second overall by the Rochester Rattlers in the 2003 MLL draft. He went on to play professionally for seven seasons and was a two-time all-star, including in 2006 when he was the game’s MVP.


Cassese represented the United States at the World Championships on four occasions, including as an assistant coach in 2014. As a midfielder, he helped the U.S. win gold in 2002 and 2010. He served as Team USA’s captain in 2010.


Cassese graduated from Duke in 2003 with a bachelor’s degree in sociology. He was named a USILA Scholar All-American and named one of four ACC student-athletes conference wide to receive Weaver-James-Corrigan Honorary Award, which recognized student-athletes for outstanding athletic and academic achievement.


A native of Port Jefferson Station, N.Y., Cassese and his wife Katie Granson Cassese, who played tennis at Duke, have three children, Drew, Anna and Claire.

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