On Friday, Holy Cross announced men’s lacrosse head coach Peter Burke was out “effective immediately.” In the interim, assistant coach Shayne Lynch was given the temporary nod, with a national search for the next permanent head coach promised immediately. No reason was given for the swift changes.
Peter Burke has been with the Crusaders since 2015 when he joined as an assistant. He held offensive coordinator and recruiting coordinator roles before he was elevated to interim head coach in 2018. In 2019, the interim tag was removed.
Holy Cross went 7-7 in 2019 under Peter Burke, its best mark since 1987. The team was 4-3 in 2020 before COVID-19 shortened the season.
Lynch has been on the Holy Cross staff since 2018 when he was hired to serve as an assistant coach and defensive coordinator. Prior to Holy Cross, he spent four seasons as the Naval Academy Preparatory School (NAPS) head coach and assistant athletic director.
That’s the biggest news of the week, but it’s not the only thing that happened in the last seven days. This is the lacrosse news for the week of Jan. 5-11, 2021:
Last Week in Lacrosse
–The Patriot League has announced its 2021 format for both men’s and women’s lacrosse, the first of the major conferences to provide concrete details (the ACC has provided some). The conference will split its teams into two divisions, making the schedule far more regional than in years past for its squads.
-A study into the safety benefits of helmets in the women’s game was published. The results, surprisingly, showed no significant change in the rate of impacts, how they occur, or how penalties were administered for impacts sustained during competition.
-Surprising nobody, Michael Sowers’ new teammates at Duke are raving about the superstar as he prepares to make his Blue Devils debut in 2021. Matt Danowski called him the “most accurate passer with both hands” to ever come through Durham.
-Inside Lacrosse’s Kyle Devitte went deep on the top players who have transferred out of DII/DIII over this past offseason. Both Syracuse and Duke, the preseason’s top two teams, have a player listed as a potential impact guy here.
–UNC begins the year as the No. 1 team in women’s lacrosse, at least according to the first Nike/USL poll. The Tar Heels, who also finished 2020 as the No. 1 team in said poll, edged fellow ACC competitor Notre Dame for the top spot on the women’s side.
-World Lacrosse announced new dates for the 2022 Women’s World Championships. Set to be held at Towson University in Maryland, the event is now set for June 29-July 9, 2022, with as many as 30 nations expected to participate.
Get Caught Up on LAS Content!
Miss out on what we did last week? Here’s a recap of some of our top content from the last seven days:
MCLA Lacrosse Programs You Should Know
The college lacrosse season is right around the corner, and it won’t be just NCAA Division I playing (hopefully). The MCLA produces some serious competition, and you’d be better off knowing some of the underappreciated members of that level.
Who Has the Most Women’s College Lacrosse Championships?
Take a guess at who has the most titles on the women’s side before reading, then see if you’re right. Then learn about some of the other programs who have some championships to boast about.
Eli Gobrecht: D1 or Bust, Life as a Pro
Ithaca College product Eli Gobrecht joined the Going Offsides podcast last week to discuss what it’s like to be a “full-time” professional lacrosse player, the D1 or bust mentality in the sport, the PLL/MLL merger and more.
Men’s D1 Lacrosse Preseason Top 20: Before the Schedules
Ryder Cochrane doesn’t need schedules, only vibes. So, he put together a preseason top 20 for men’s NCAA Division I college lax before all that pesky information is known. Only a handful of weeks until college lacrosse is back!
