Bob Vlahakis Named Women's Lacrosse Head Coach at St. Joseph's College

has announced that Bob Vlahakis will be the new head women’s lacrosse coach at the school.

According to athletic director Donald Lizak, the hope is for the program to begin playing a varsity schedule in the spring of 2012.

Vlahakis was the girl’s lacrosse coach at Shoreham-Wading River High School, where he led them to four New York State Championships (2007-10), five Long Island championships (2006-10), seven Suffolk County championships (2004-2010) and six Suffolk County and New York State team sportsmanship awards.

He has also been named Long Island Coach of the Year three times and is a seven time recipient of the Suffolk County Class C Coach of the Year honor.

“St. Joseph’s College is extremely fortunate and very pleased to have someone with the talents and expertise of Bob Vlahakis, join our staff,” Lizak said in a statement. “He is a proven winner in every respect, and we are excited about what he brings to our program.”

The addition of women’s lacrosse as an NCAA Division III sport will increase the SJC athletic program’s total to 19 teams and one support squad. The new club will take the field at St. Joseph’s new outdoor athletic complex, slated to be completed by this fall, according to the college.

Vlahakis, a Shoreham resident, was an English and Social Studies teacher at Shoreham-Wading River Middle School for 30 years. He also coached the boys and girls soccer programs at Shoreham-Wading River, winning four Long Island championships, five Suffolk County titles and nine coach of the year awards. Overall his coaching record in 26 combined seasons of the three sports was 343-133-19 (.721 winning percentage).

Off the field, Vlahakis holds the position of senior editor for Inside Lacrosse’s Face-Off Lacrosse Yearbook – a publication he founded in 1994.