University of Massachusets Athletics
Cannella Named USILA National Lacrosse Coach Of The Year
June 19, 2006 | Men's Lacrosse
June 19, 2006
AMHERST, Mass. - UMass coach Greg Cannella was named the 2006 USILA National Lacrosse Coach of the Year after leading the Minutemen to their first-ever national championship game. The Minutemen tied a school record for wins with a 13-5 mark on the way to beating three top-five teams in the NCAA Tournament to reach the championship game. A 1988 UMass graduate, Cannella has been at the helm of the University of Massachusetts for 12 years.
Cannella's coaching staff of Jason Miller and Jake Coon played huge roles in the team's success this past season working heavily with the defense and freshman goalie Doc Schneider.
UMass became the first New England team in lacrosse history to reach the national final and just the third to reach the national semifinals. The unseeded Minutemen made an amazing run in the NCAA Tournament, knocking off No. 6 seeded/No. 3 Cornell; No. 3 seeded/No. 2 Hofstra and No. 2 seeded/No. 4 Maryland in the semifinals. UMass is the first team to beat three teams seeded in the top 6 in the NCAA Tournament in lacrosse history, marking the most difficult path to a national championship game all-time.
Cannella is the first UMass coach to earn the USILA National Coach of the Year. He has been previously named the ECAC Coach of the Year in 2001, 2002 and 2004. He has also been named the New England Coach of the Year in 2001, 2002, 2005 and 2006.
In his 12 years at UMass, he has posted a 106-62 career record, for a .635 win percentage, the eighth-highest active win percentage among all coaches. Over the last six years, UMass has a 70-24 record, third-best of any school in the nation.
