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Cathy Reese
One of the most decorated coaches at the collegiate level, former Maryland standout and four-time IWLCA National Coach of the Year Cathy Reese has had unprecedented success, standing as the all-time winningest coach in Maryland women's lacrosse history, leading the Terps to five National Championships, 12 Final Fours and 22 Conference Championships in 17 years as head coach.
In total as a student-athlete, assistant coach and head coach for the Terrapins, Reese has earned 12 NCAA Championships. Reese stands sixth all-time among women's lacrosse head coaches with 332 wins and was the fastest ever to 200, 250 and 300 wins.
Reese is a member of the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame, Maryland Athletics Hall of Fame and was named the Inside Lacrosse Coach of the Decade for 2010-19, where she saw her program be named the Inside Lacrosse Program of the Decade (men's or women's) after going 215-14 with five national championships, 16 conference championships and 10 trips to the final four.
The Terps won both the Big Ten Regular Season and Tournament Championship in 2022, reaching their 12th Final Four in the past 13 seasons under Reese. Maryland went 19-2, going undefeated in Big Ten play and defeating nine top-20 opponents. Reese coached Tewaaraton Finalist and Big Ten Attacker of the Year Aurora Cordingley, National Goaltender of the Year Emily Sterling and Big Ten Defender of the Year and IWLCA First Team All-American Abby Bosco. Reese won her 300th game at Maryland in the Big Ten Tournament Championship as the Terps defeated No. 13 Rutgers.
2019 was a banner year for Reese and the Terps as Maryland won the program's 15th national title, positing a 22-1 record. Reese became Maryland's all-time winningest coach with a win at #7 Virginia in April and led Maryland to an undefeated regular season and fifth consecutive Big Ten Regular Season Championship. Megan Taylor became the first ever goalie in lacrosse and sixth different Terp to win the Tewaaraton Award, while Reese was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year for the fourth straight season. Reese also bosted the Big Ten Midfielder of the Year Jen Giles, the Big Ten Defender of the Year Julia Braig and Big Ten Goaltender of the Year Megan Taylor. Reese capped the season with IWLCA Regional and National Coach of the Year honors.
Reese led Maryland to their 10th straight final four in the 2018 season, posting a 20-2 record. The Terps won their fourth consecutive Big Ten regular season title and third consecutive Big Ten tournament title. Going undefeated in College Park for the fifth straight season, Reese and the Terps defeated 15 top-25 opponents. Six Terps earned IWLCA All-American honors, the most for the program since 2014, while Reese was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year for the third straight season.
The Terps competed perfection in 2017 as the team went 23-0 and won the program’s 14th national title. Maryland won both the Big Ten regular season and tournament titles. Five Terps were honored as All-Americans while Maryland featured the IWLCA National Midfielder, Defender and Goalie of the Year in Zoe Stukenberg, Nadine Hadnagy and Megan Taylor. Zoe Stukenberg went on to win the Tewaaraton Award, Maryland’s sixth-straight honoree.
Maryland had a near-perfect season in 2016 as the Terps posted a 22-1 record with the only blemish coming in the national championship game. Maryland won the Big Ten regular season and tournament titles. Five Terps earned All-American honors while six players were named All-Big Ten. Taylor Cummings finished her playing career as the most decorated player in lacrosse, three-peating as the Tewaaraton and Honda Award winner and as the IWLCA National Midfielder of the Year. Alice Mercer garnered IWLCA National Defender of the Year honors.
The Terps garned their second-straight NCAA Championship in 2015 under Reese. Maryland posted a 21-1 overall record and earned the first-ever Big Ten Regular Season Championship with a 5-0 conference record. Reese was named the IWLCA National Coach of the Year for the third time while Taylor Cummings and Megan Douty repeated as the IWLCA National Midfielder and Defender of the Year, respectively. Five Terps were named IWLCA All-Americans while eight players earned All-Big Ten honors. Cummings repeated as the Tewaaraton Award and Honda Award winner while posting her best season to date under Reese.
Reese led the Terps to their second NCAA title in five years in 2014. Maryland garnered a 23-1 record on their way to a sixth consecutive Atlantic Coast Conference title in the team’s last season in the conference. Reese was named ACC Coach of the Year for a league-high seventh time. The Terps boasted six IWLCA All-Americans, including IWLCA National Midfielder of the Year Taylor Cummings and IWLCA National Defender of the Year Megan Douty. Cummings went on to become the first sophomore to earn the women’s Tewaaraton Award. Reese capped the season with IWLCA Regional and National Coach of the Year honors.
The Terps were near perfect in 2013, going 22-1 with its lone loss coming in heartbreaking fashion in overtime against North Carolina in the national title game. Maryland won its unprecedented fifth straight ACC title and senior Katie Schwarzmann won the Tewaaraton Award for the second straight year. The Terps boasted the IWLCA Midfielder and Attacker of the Year in Schwarzmann and Alex Aust. Taylor Cummings was named ACC Rookie of the Year.
Maryland captured its conference-record fourth consecutive ACC title in 2012 and landed in the final four for the fourth straight season. Reese mentored her second Tewaaraton winner - Katie Schwarzmann - and landed four student-athletes on the IWLCA All-America list.
Reese’s Terps won their third-straight conference championship in 2011 while landing in the final four of the NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Championship for the third consecutive season. Maryland concluded the season with a 21-2 record, falling short in the title game to Northwestern. The Terps put together another stellar season, boasting two Tewaaraton finalists, an ACC Player of the Year and four IWLCA First Team All-Americans.
With the Terps falling just once in regular season play, Maryland wrapped up the 2010 campaign on a 10-game winning streak, which concluded in elation with a gallant comeback against five-time defending national champion Northwestern in the NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Championship. Reese coached Maryland’s first Tewaaraton Award winner since Jen Adams as Caitlyn McFadden was tabbed the top player in all of women’s lacrosse. Four other Terrapins landed All-America status as well and Reese garnered IWLCA National Coach of the Year honors along with being named the top coach in the conference for the second straight season.
Reese had Maryland on the verge of perfection in 2009, leading the Terps to a 21-1 record, an NCAA Final Four trip and ACC Tournament and Regular Season championships. She boasted three Tewaaraton nominees, five All-Americans, five All-ACC honorees, the ACC Player and Rookie of the Year and the IWLCA Midfielder of the Year.
Reese returned to her alma mater in 2007 as the head coach and guided the Terps to a 16-4 record, including a first-place finish in the Atlantic Coast Conference at 4-1, earning the conference’s Coach of the Year award. Reese continued to move Maryland in a positive direction in 2008, steering the Terps to an 18-3 record and an Atlantic Coast Conference regular season title. Once again, Reese boasted some of the top talent in the nation as senior Dana Dobbie was tabbed ACC Player of the Year in addition to being named a finalist for the Tewaarton Trophy, given annually to the nation’s best player.
Reese returned to Maryland after spending her first three seasons as head coach at the University of Denver where she guided the Pioneers to their most successful season in school history in 2006 with a 16-5 record.
Prior to lifting the Denver program to national attention, Reese spent nine seasons in College Park, four as a student-athlete and five as an assistant coach. During that span, the women’s lacrosse program had one of the most successful streaks seen in collegiate women’s sports history. The Terps won seven national championships in her first nine years on campus.
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