Since being hired as Head Coach of the Stony Brook women’s lacrosse team back in June of 2012, Joe Spallina has brought nothing but success to the program. Under his leadership the team has won two NCAA tournament games, nailed down a pair of America East tournament championships and produced three IWLCA All-Americans.
Spallina’s positive influence on the Seawolves has not gone unnoticed. Just one day before the team’s season opener, the Stony Brook Athletics Department made the decision to ensure that the program’s all-time winningest coach will be in the fold for years to come.
Director of Athletics Shawn Heilbron announced on Friday that the university has extended Spallina’s contract through June of 2019.
“Joe has worked tirelessly to establish Stony Brook as one of the top women’s lacrosse programs in the country, and I am thrilled he will continue to lead our student-athletes towards even greater heights.” Heilbron said in a statement. “Long Island is a national hotbed for lacrosse, and Joe is a homegrown product who has done a phenomenal job of turning Stony Brook into a premier destination for top talent.”
Spallina now enters his fourth season at the helm for the SBU women’s lacrosse team after spending four years coaching at Adelphi. The Seawolves are 49-12 overall, and 15-2 in conference play, with him as Head Coach.
One of the biggest reasons Spallina decided to sign the contract extension was his faith in the man leading the university’s Athletics department.
“It came down to that I believe in the Athletics Director. Shawn is lights out,” Spallina said on Saturday, after his team’s season opening victory. “I know he’s a huge proponent of our program, giving us every resource that USC, or Ohio State, or any one of the big programs have.”
Spallina also lives on Long Island, where he and his wife have four kids, and a fifth on the way. The extension allows him to stay put in a place where his family is comfortable while also giving him an opportunity to coach a team that can potentially be a contender in the NCAA tournament for years to come.
“There’s no place I’d rather be,” Spallina said. “I know I can get it done here. I know we will get it done here.”
