Courtesy of Stony Brook Athletic Communications
STONY BROOK, N.Y.--Joe Spallina, a lifelong resident of Long Island and winner
of three consecutive NCAA Division II national championships as the head coach
of the Adelphi University women’s lacrosse program, has been named the head
women’s lacrosse coach at Stony Brook University, Director of Athletics Jim
Fiore announced Wednesday.
“We are thrilled that
we have found a head coach who is representative of the type of program we want
to have here at Stony Brook - tough, competitive, tenacious and smart,” Fiore
said. “Coach Spallina has proven to be committed to student-athlete excellence
on and off the field. He has produced national championships by continually
recruiting the top local talent on Long Island, and his record speaks for
itself. Joe knows Long Island women’s lacrosse, as well as, if not better than
anyone, and I think he is the perfect fit to raise Stony Brook’s profile in
what is clearly becoming one of the most popular and fastest growing college
sports in the country.”
Spallina spent the
last four seasons as the head coach at Adelphi, producing a dominant 73-2
(.973) record and an NCAA-record three consecutive Division II national
championships, including in 2011 when his team defeated Limestone in the title
game on its home field on May 22. The victory completed a perfect 20-0 season
and was the team’s 26th consecutive win. Spallina’s Panthers were the
wire-to-wire No. 1 ranked team in the nation according to the Intercollegiate
Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) poll.
“I am incredibly
excited about this phenomenal opportunity to become the head coach of the Stony
Brook University women’s lacrosse team,” Spallina said. “My wife, Mary Beth,
and I recognize just how impressive Stony Brook University is, and we are
committed to working with the administration, the student-athletes and the
entire community to take the women’s lacrosse program to new heights. We will
not stop until we achieve the highest levels of success. As we prepare to
compete for championships at Stony Brook and to continue to build a strong
brand, it is also important that I express my sincere appreciation to everyone
at Adelphi University for the exceptional experience I had there during the
past four years. As a lifelong resident of Long Island, it has been and will
continue to be my great honor to represent the strongest lacrosse community in
the nation here on Long Island as the newest member of the Seawolf family.”
In all four of his
seasons, Spallina led Adelphi to at least the NCAA Championship semifinals. In
2008, Spallina’s first season, the Panthers won 16 consecutive games to reach
the final four before falling to C.W. Post. The following season, Spallina led
the program to its first-ever undefeated season with an 18-0 record and beating
C.W. Post and Lock Haven to secure Adelphi’s third national championship. In
2010, Spallina’s team won its first 14 games for an overall 32-game winning
streak before slipping up against C.W. Post. However, the Panthers avenged the
loss by beating Post again in the national semifinals and then topping West
Chester for a second consecutive national championship. In 2011, Adelphi’s
championship win marked the team’s 26th consecutive victory and the program’s
second-ever undefeated season.
Spallina has received
numerous personal accolades for his coaching efforts. He is a two-time IWLCA
Coach of the Year and a three-time conference Coach of the Year (Northeast-10
in 2010 & ’11 and East Coast Conference in 2009). In 2011, he was named the
Nassau County Sports Commission College Coach of the Year, and in 2009, he was
the FieldTurf NCAA Division II Women’s Lacrosse Coach of the Year.
Spallina has proven
to be a strong recruiter on his native soil. A resident of Rocky Point, N.Y.,
Spallina’s 2011 roster at Adelphi was 89 percent Long Island recruits,
including 16 student-athletes from Suffolk County. In total under Spallina’s
watch, Adelphi has had 21 IWLCA All-American selections, 22 IWLCA All-Region
picks and 35 All-Conference honorees. His team has also produced the IWLCA
Goalie of the Year for three consecutive years and the Attacker of the Year and
Midfielder of the Year for two consecutive seasons, as well as the Defensive
Player of the Year in 2010. The team has also nearly swept the conference
awards for the last three seasons, producing the conference Player of the Year
and Goalkeeper of the Year in all three years and Rookie of the Year and
Defensive Player of the Year for two of the three seasons.
Spallina’s student-athletes
have also produced in the classroom. Adelphi’s Kristin Jones was the 2011 NCAA
Div. II Elite 88 Award recipient as having the top GPA among the four NCAA
Championship teams. She was also named the IWLCA Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
In total, Spallina has had six IWLCA Scholar-Athletes, three CoSIDA Academic
All-District selections and one CoSIDA Academic All-America honoree.
In addition to his
duties at Adelphi, Spallina is also in his second season as an assistant coach
for the Long Island Lizards of Major League Lacrosse (MLL), helping guide the
Lizards to the MLL championship game in 2010. Spallina also is director of the
Pro Player Girls Lacrosse Camp in Oakdale, N.Y.
Prior to taking over
at Adelphi, Spallina was the head coach of the girls lacrosse team at Rocky
Point High School and led the squad to five Suffolk County finals, including
three consecutive championships in his last three years, compiling an
impressive 87-9 overall record. Spallina also coached the girls soccer team at
Rocky Point.
Spallina is a 1996
graduate of Adelphi, earning his Bachelor of Arts degree in Physical Education.
He was a four-year starter at midfielder on the men’s lacrosse team and helped
lead the Panthers to a 38-14 record and two national championships in 1993 and
’95. He also lettered in men’s soccer for two years. Spallina is also a
graduate of Rocky Point High School, where he was All-Conference in lacrosse
and All-County in soccer.
Spallina, who also
earned his Master of Arts in Health Studies from Stony Brook University in
2004, resides in Rocky Point, N.Y., with his wife, Mary Beth, and four
children.
Information on a
formal press conference will be announced in the near future.
For more information
on Stony Brook Athletics, please visit GoSeawolves.org and follow the Seawolves
on Twitter at SBAthletics.