St. John's University Athletics
Rick Sowell Introduced as St. John' Lacrosse Coach
7/9/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Sowell, who was introduced to the media and the St. John?s community, on Wednesday afternoon in the President?s Room of Alumni Hall knows that he is going to have some challenges, but said the commitment of the Athletic Department and the University make his joining the program the right decision.
The new coach joins St. John?s from Dartmouth, where he guided the Big Green to a 33-35 overall record, including an 11-3 mark in 2003, when they won the Ivy League Championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
?When this search began a few months ago,? St. John?s Vice President for Institutional Advancement and Athletics David C. Wegrzyn said as he introduced Sowell, ?one name kept on coming up as an ideal candidate for us and that was Rick?s name.
?I received a phone call from Joe Lang the athletic director at Georgetown who I have been talking to a great deal with all the conference issues going on, but it wasn?t a conference issue he wanted to talk about, he wanted to talk about Rick. I took that as an opportunity to explore the name and some of the history and it really intrigued me that he had been identified by Joe and people have been calling to recommend him as well.?
Sowell served as the head coach at Dartmouth for four years before coming to St. John?s. Prior to his stint in the Ivy League, Sowell was an assistant coach at Georgetown for eight years. During his time with the Hoyas, the program grew to a national contender, advancing to the NCAA Tournament in 1997 and 1998, respectively. In ?98, the Hoyas went 10-5 and advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals, losing to top-seeded Loyola.
?I thought this would be a great fit for not only myself but for my family and I am extremely happy to join the St. John?s community and look forward to some challenges, but everything is in place here,? Sowell said. ?For me to want to leave Dartmouth, it had to be the right situation for me.
?Things have been going really well there for the past year and I think this will serve as a recruiting tool for the kids I started recruiting yesterday. There must be a lot of good things happening here at St. John?s for me to be here. I am just looking forward to being a part of this and hopefully having some success sooner than later. ?
Success has followed Sowell since he began playing the sport as a sophomore in high school. He earned all-league, all-area and all-state honors growing up in Western New York. He began his collegiate career at the State University of New York at Cobleskill in 1982 before transferring to Division III powerhouse Washington (Md.) College. He was the 1985 Division III National Midfielder of the Year, as well as a two-time All-America, leading Washington to the Division III National Championship game twice.
?His background in building the program at Georgetown, in doing the same as the head coach at Dartmouth, coupled with his experience as a Division III player and professional lacrosse player really gave him a tremendous background,? Wegrzyn said. ?He is formidable coach for us in a program we are going to be very proud of.?
Sowell, who earned his bachelor?s degree in history in 1986 from Washington, played professionally for five years with the Baltimore Thunder of the Major Indoor Lacrosse League (MILL), where he was a three-time first-team All-Pro selection.
St. John?s added men?s lacrosse to its intercollegiate program in December 2002 and will begin play in the 2004-05 academic year.
?I am really going to stay with the same blueprint I have used before (at Georgetown and at Dartmouth) and I?m going to sell playing time, and an opportunity for kids to come and grow with that program,? Sowell said. ?I am going to highlight the commitment that the school is making, I am going to highlight to New York City advantages or living here.
?Those are some big challenges, but with all that we have to sell here, we are going to hear some no?s, but eventually we will crack some of that recruiting base. I am pretty confident that we are going to have a few kids that are going to come an want to be a part of it.?
Sowell, who was inducted into the Washington College Hall of Fame in 2000, and his wife Catherine, have a daughter, Kennady.
