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Fresh Start for Lacrosse
John Danowski, a national lacrosse coach-of-the-year
winner whose teams won eight conference championships at Hofstra
University, has been named the new head coach of Duke's men's lacrosse
team.
Danowski, the father of lacrosse All-America Matt Danowski '07,
will take over the program from Kevin Cassesse '03. Cassesse became
interim head coach after Mike Pressler resigned in the wake of
the controversial rape investigation that led to the indictment
of three team members. Danowski's appointment was unanimously recommended
by an eight-member committee following a national search.
Danowski is entering his twenty-fifth season as a collegiate head
coach and was honored in 1993 as the NCAA Division I National Coach
of the Year. He spent the last twenty-one seasons at Hofstra, compiling
a record of 192-123, with eight conference championships and NCAA
tournament bids.
With an overall record of 219-139, he is among just eight active
head coaches in NCAA Division I men's lacrosse to have won at least
200 games. Under Danowski, Hofstra student-athletes who completed
their eligibility graduated at a rate better than 90 percent.
Athletics Director Joe Alleva and President Richard H. Brodhead
praised Danowski's character and integrity and his ability to bring
out the best in his players. As the father of a Duke lacrosse player,
Danowski already knows many of the players and their families,
as well as the issues facing a team that had its season cut short
amid scandal a year after making the NCAA finals.
"As we look to the future," he says, "we know that
our performance will not be measured solely in terms of wins and
losses. Yes, we will compete for championships, and I hope to win
one next year. But I also will insist that our players act consistently
in a manner that brings honor to themselves and the university."
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