St. John's University Athletics
Men's Lacrosse
- Title:
- Head Coach
- Email:
- turrij@stjohns.edu
Justin Turri enters his third year at the helm of the St. John’s lacrosse program in 2024-25 after being hired as the program’s fourth head coach on June 17, 2022.
In the 2023-24 season, Turri led the Johnnies to a 4-11 record and the program’s first BIG EAST win since 2016. The Red Storm won its first game in the Turri Era on Feb. 28, an 11-8 victory over Queens University in Charlotte, N.C. Turri also led the squad to victories over Binghamton and Le Moyne before taking down conference-foe Marquette, 13-9, on March 30, 2024 at Belson Stadium. The four wins are the most for the program since 2019.
Under Turri’s leadership this past season, the Red Storm posted its highest faceoff percentage since 2020. Additionally, junior attackmen Brian Kelly and Bobby Seel were named to the All-BIG EAST First and Second Teams, respectively.
In his first season in Queens, the Red Storm improved in several statistical categories from 2022 including goals scored, assists, shots, shots on goal, ground balls and caused turnovers.
A two-time All-American and National Champion at Duke as a player, Turri is in his first gig as the head man following assistant coaching positions at Michigan, Harvard, Army and Providence.
Turri came to Queens after spending four seasons as an assistant coach and offensive coordinator at the University of Michigan, where he helped the Wolverines turn in one of the country’s top offensive outputs in 2022. Michigan finished third in the Big Ten and 11th nationally in scoring offense, netting 14.1 goals per contest that season. The Wolverines also ranked among the top 10 in Division I for assists per game (8.6- 8th), man-up offense (.500- 5th) and opponent clear percentage (.801- 9th).
This latest season in Ann Arbor, Turri mentored attackman Josh Zawada, a two-time All-Big Ten honoree and USILA Honorable Mention All-American who set the program records for points (77), goals (43) and assists (34) this past spring. Zawada ranked third in the conference and eighth nationally with 5.13 points per game, helping the Wolverines climb as high as no. 13 in both the Inside Lacrosse and USILA Coaches polls on March 7 following a 7-0 start. The seven-game winning streak was capped off with a decisive 18-8 win over then-no. 17 Delaware, who went on to reach the NCAA Quarterfinals.
A proven recruiter, Turri helped compile four consecutive top-15 recruiting classes while at Michigan, including the nation’s third-best class in 2020.
Turri began his collegiate coaching career in the BIG EAST, spending the 2014 campaign as a volunteer assistant at Providence.
Turri carries a playing pedigree that is unmatched by most coaches in the collegiate game. A two-time USILA All-American at Duke, Turri advanced to Championship Weekend four times during his five years in Durham, highlighted by the 2010 National Championship. A USILA Second Team All-American in 2011 before earning an honorable mention spot in 2012, Turri was a part of three ACC Championship squads and served as a team captain for his final two seasons in 2011 and 2012.
After graduating from Duke, Turri embarked on a nine-year professional career spanning MLL and the Premier Lacrosse League. A 2014 MLL All-Star, Turri won the league’s most improved player award that season and was a two-time MLL Finalist with the Rochester Rattlers.
Turri graduated from Duke with a bachelor’s in economics in 2011 before earning a Master of Management Studies degree from the university’s prestigious Fuqua School of Business the following year. Turri spent two years as a sports finance analyst before beginning his coaching career.
A Long Island native, Turri was part of a powerhouse program at West Islip High School that won back-to-back New York State Class A Championships in 2006 and 2007.
Turri is married to Rachel Janasek Turri, a former tennis star at Loyola Maryland. The couple has three young children- William (3) and twins Matthew and David.
He has two younger brothers, Wade and Kyle, the latter of whom was a teammate of Justin’s at Duke and joined him at St. John's as an assistant coach in July 2022.
