Nichols College

Dudley, MA 01571

Massachusetts Northeast

Private Small Developing team

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Coaches

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Will Mraz

William Mraz was named the 10th in Nichols College women's lacrosse program history on October 1, 2019 and begins his fourth season at the helm of the program in 2023.

The 2022 campaign was a banner year for the Bison as they won a program-record 11 games while setting single-season records for assists (65), ground balls (500), caused turnovers (192), shots (501), and goals against average (GAA) (10.04). Three student-athletes – Hadley Houghton, McKenzie Muir, and Erin Anthony – received CCC All-Conference honors while another nine were named to the CCC Academic All-Conference Team. Nichols qualified for the conference playoffs for the first time since 2011.

The Bison played just two games under Mraz before the 2020 campaign was canceled. Last spring, 10 of Mraz’s student-athletes were named to the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Academic All-Conference Team.

A veteran of more than 30 years of coaching at both the collegiate and international levels, currently and will continue to serve as the head coach of the Czech Republic Women’s National Team. He guided them to a fourth-place finish at the 2019 European Cup and saw four players finish in the top 10 in scoring. The team set European Cup records for most goals scored and fewest goals allowed, and were invited by the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) to compete at the 2021 World Games in Birmingham, Alabama. They will also compete for the World Cup in 2021.

Mraz – who served two stints as the head coach of the Fairfield University women’s club lacrosse program (2012-16; 2018-19) – spent the 2017-18 school year as an assistant coach at William & Mary, which is a member of the Colonial Athletic Conference (CAA). He worked directly with the Tribe goalkeepers and was instrumental in the development of both offensive and defensive game strategies while assisting with recruiting and practice planning. Mraz saw two student-athletes earn CCC Rookie of the Week honors while another earned Defensive Player of the Week accolades, and a fourth received All-Rookie Team honors.

As the head coach of Maine Maritime in 2016-17, Mraz helped the Mariners establishes a single-season program record for wins as they advanced to the semifinals of the North Atlantic Conference (NAC) for the first time in school history. Maine Maritime set a total of 34 school records during his time as head coach, and the team earned International Women’s Lacrosse Coaching Association (IWLCA)/Zag Sports Academic Honors.

Mraz began his collegiate coaching career in 1993 as an assistant with the startup men’s lacrosse program at Fairfield University. In four seasons with the Stags, Mraz helped the program record their first winning record in 1996 and advance to the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) playoffs. He then returned to the collegiate ranks – albeit on the women’s side – in 2014 when he joined the University of Bridgeport. He spent two seasons with the Purple Knights, helping them win a program-record 12 games in 2015 while establishing school records for both goals/game (12.94) and goals against average (GAA) (7.53).

Mraz co-founded the Wakemans; Boys and Girls Lacrosse Club in 1988 and worked as head coach of their Girls Elite Travel Teams until 2016. He was responsible for management of all travel girls teams, skill instruction, game strategies and coaching, scheduling, and practice lessons. Mraz saw participation grow from 45 to over 800 boys and girls during that span.

A 1973 graduate of Fairfield University, Mraz was a two-sport athlete and captain of the men's lacrosse team. In addition to being inducted into both the Staples High School and Fairfield University Athletics Hall of Fame for his success in lacrosse (1999), he received the 2016 Fairfield University Founders Award for his 'Outstanding Contribution and Dedicated Service to the Sport of Lacrosse.’

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Shane Lynch

Shane Lynch was named head coach of the Nichols College Men’s Lacrosse Team prior to the 2023 spring season.

In 2023, Lynch’s first season in Dudley, the Bison won 11 games, tying for their most wins in a season since 1970, including a berth to the CCC Semifinals. In the CCC quarterfinal, the Bison knocked off No. 4 Roger Williams on the road, 6-4. Nichols also took home many conference honors, as Hunter Ferreira, Cian Keohane, and Brady Morgan were selected to the CCC Second Team, while Colby Gillis and Nick Gualtieri received third-team honors.

Lynch comes to Nichols after most recently serving as the Associate Head Coach at Holy Cross, spending four seasons on the sidelines for the Crusaders, holding the responsibilities of Defensive Coordinator.

In his first season with Holy Cross in 2019, Lynch helped guide the squad to a 7-7 record, securing wins over Navy, Brown, and Harvard. The team earned the fifth seed in the Patriot League (PL) postseason, a program best dating back to 1988. His defense finished the regular-season fifth in caused turnovers, eighth in scoring defense, and 15th in man-down defense in all of NCAA Division I.

Lynch coached All-PL First Team selection in defender Matt Farrell in 2019 prior to Sean New being selected in the first-round of the 2020 Premier Lacrosse League (PLL), the Crusaders first and only PLL selection. Most recently, Chris Conlin was named to the All-PL First Team as a defender in 2022 after garnering Second Team honors in 2021.

Prior to his time in Worcester, Lynch spent four seasons with the Naval Academy Preparatory School (NAPS) as the head coach and assistant athletic director from August 2015 to August 2018. While at NAPS, Lynch helped recruit, train, and develop future members of the Navy men's lacrosse team.

Before his stop at NAPS, Lynch was an assistant at Washington College. At Washington, Lynch was a part of a special team that made its way to the Division III Final Four with an 18-2 final record in the 2014 season. Lynch helped guide several players who were recognized as some of the Centennial Conference's (CC) as well as the nation's best players, including Casey McKnight who was All-CC for three seasons before being named an All-American and the Division III Defensive Player of the Year in 2014.

Lynch was a four-year letter winner at Wesley College as a member of the Wolverines' lacrosse team, highlighted by being named the team captain in his final two seasons. After receiving his Bachelor's in Sports Management from Wesley in 2011, Lynch was awarded his Master's in History from Washington College in 2014.