Coaches

Ian Thomas

Ian Thomas '14 will enter his second season as the head coach of the women's lacrosse team in 2023.


Thomas enjoyed great success in his inaugural season at the helm of the program, leading the Cadets to a 12-5 overall record and a 10-3 mark in Great Northeast Athletic Conference play, resulting in Norwich's best record since 2012. The Cadets completed an undefeated regular season at home en route to securing a top-four seed in the GNAC playoffs.


A four-year member of both the Corps of Cadets and men's lacrosse team at Norwich, Thomas was a prolific attackman. His many career accomplishments are highlighted by leading the Cadets to the program's first-ever conference championship and NCAA Tournament bid as a junior in 2013. During that season, Thomas tied for the team lead in points with 47 (28 goals and 19 assists), while averaging 4.2 points over the final nine games of the year. Sidelined with a shoulder injury for half of his senior season, Thomas finished his career at Norwich fifth all-time in goals with 75, sixth in assists (45) and sixth in points (120).


During his time at Norwich, Thomas fell in love with Vermont. After graduating in 2014 he wasted no time getting back on the field. In 2015, he became an assistant coach at South Burlington High School. That season South Burlington posted a 13-3 record and earned the second seed in the state tournament, falling in the semifinals to eventual state champion CVU High School.


Following that season at South Burlington, Thomas returned to Norwich as an assistant coach in the fall of 2015. Following both the 2016 and 2017 seasons at Norwich, Thomas continued to coach at South Burlington as a volunteer. During those two seasons, Thomas helped the Rebels (now Wolves) make two State Finals appearances, losing both times to CVU High School. In the spring of 2018, Thomas assumed the role of offensive coordinator at Norwich.


Over his four seasons as an assistant coach at Norwich, Thomas helped the program grow tremendously. After losing in the conference semifinals four years in a row from 2014 to 2017, the Cadets hosted the GNAC title game in 2018, making it back to the finals for the first time since 2013. Despite falling just short, the Cadets enjoyed sweet redemption the following year, returning to the conference finals in 2019 and proving victorious on the road to claim the conference championship.


After the end of the season, Thomas left the team in March, accepting the head varsity coach position at Spaulding High School in Barre, Vt. During the 2019 campaign, Spaulding registered its best season in program history, posting a 13-1 regular season record. The Crimson Tide earned the number one seed in the state tournament, eventually falling by one goal in a back-and-forth battle with Milton in the quarterfinals. That same year, Thomas was voted both the US Lacrosse Vermont Coach of the Year and the Division II Coach of the Year in Vermont. Spaulding also earned the Division II Sportsmanship Award, as voted on by the Vermont Lacrosse Officials Association.