Stony Brook hires Anthony Gilardi as next men’s lacrosse head coach

UPDATE #1: Stony Brook has made it official. Their press release is below the original story.

ORIGINAL STORY:

The Stony Brook Seawolves men’s lacrosse team will hire Towson Tigers offensive coordinator Anthony Gilardi as their next head coach. The news was first reported by Inside Lacrosse’s Ty Xanders. A source also confirmed this to our own Chris Jastrzembski. The hiring concludes a 36 day search since the school parted ways with head coach Jim Nagle on May 14th, as reported by Jastrzembski.

Gilardi has been Towson’s offensive coordinator since 2011, first under Tony Seaman and then staying on under Shawn Nadelen, who promoted him to associate head coach before the 2014 season. The Tigers have ranked on average 44th in scoring offense during Gilardi’s nine seasons, and 31st in offensive efficiency the last six seasons. They made a Final Four with Gilardi as an assistant in 2017 and have appeared in five NCAA Tournament’s in the past seven seasons. His players earned three All-American selections, Ryan Drenner twice in 2016 and 2017 and Mike Lynch in 2017. Prior to being on staff at Towson, Gilardi spent two seasons at Navy in 2009 and 2010, and four years at his alma mater Ohio State from 2005 to 2008, including leading the nation’s 3rd best scoring offense in 2008, when the Buckeyes made the NCAA Quarterfinals.

Jastrzembski also reported that after Joe Amplo took the head coaching position at Navy, Gilardi was Stony Brook’s top choice and they focused in on making him their head coach. Duke’s Matt Danowski, former Stony Brook assistant and current Navy assistant Ryan Wellner, and Robert Morris head coach Andrew McMinn were finalists.

PRESS RELEASE:

STONY BROOK, N.Y. – Stony Brook Director of Athletics Shawn Heilbron has named former Towson Associate Head Coach Anthony Gilardi as the new head men’s lacrosse coach, the athletic department announced on Thursday.

Gilardi comes to Long Island after spending eight successful seasons with the Tigers, serving as Associate Head Coach for the past six. During his tenure at Towson, Gilardi helped guide the team to five CAA Championships and NCAA Tournament appearances. Most recently, the 2019 Towson team made program history, being ranked No. 1 in the national polls for the first time while earning the No. 6 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. Gilardi was also instrumental in a pair of the Tigers’ deep postseason runs, reaching the Final Four in 2017 and the NCAA tournament quarterfinals in 2016.

In his role as Associate Head Coach, Gilardi was the mastermind behind Towson’s attack as the Offensive Coordinator while also being tasked with attracting the nation’s top talent as the Recruiting Coordinator.

“Today is a wonderful day for Stony Brook Athletics as we welcome Anthony, his wife Jessica, and children Lucas and Anna to the Seawolves family,” Heilbron said. “Anthony is a tireless recruiter who is one of the most respected offensive minds in the game. Our expectation at Stony Brook is to compete for a national championship, and Anthony has a vision to help lead us there. As a native Long Islander, he understands the importance of lacrosse at Stony Brook as well as throughout this region. He genuinely cares about developing student-athletes on and off of the field and brings an energy that will be felt throughout the department. I am excited to work with Anthony and know that our student-athletes will be as well.”

“My family and I could not be more excited to be joining the Seawolves family,” Gilardi said. “I want to thank Athletic Director Shawn Heilbron and the entire search committee for believing in me and my vision to help lead Stony Brook Men’s Lacrosse to new levels. I want to thank Towson Head Coach Shawn Nadelen, all of the Towson staff and all of our players, past and present, for all of the support, passion and love. We are looking forward to attacking each and every day with championship effort in all we do and we will focus on keeping the best players on Long Island home!”

Off the field, Gilardi played a pivotal role in the team’s academic success, serving as a liaison for the Academic Support Services at Towson.

Gilardi arrived at Towson following successful assistant coaching stints at the United States Naval Academy, Ohio State and Denison. In his three years as an assistant coach at Navy, the Midshipmen reached the 2009 NCAA Tournament as the Patriot League Champions. Gilardi also coached four All-Patriot League Offensive Players, one Honorable Mention All-American Midfielder and one conference Rookie of the Year.

From 2005-08, Gilardi was an assistant coach at his alma mater, Ohio State, helping the team reach the 2008 NCAA Quarterfinals. Prior to his time with the Buckeyes, he spent one season as an assistant coach with Division III power Denison.

Gilardi played collegiately at Ohio State from 2000-04 where he was a three-year starter, a two-time All-GWLL selection and a team captain his senior season. Following graduation, he signed a free-agent contract with the Long Island Lizards of the MLL and began his coaching career as a Volunteer Assistant Coach with the Buckeyes.

Per university guidelines, Gilardi’s hire will be official upon a successful background check.