Pressler's alumni, assistants thriving as head coaches

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – There was a specific word used frequently by six collegiate head coaches to describe Bryant University men's lacrosse coach Mike Pressler.

"Loyalty."

It is a word that embodies Pressler's decorated career, from his 14 seasons of dedication to Bryant University and its athletic department, to his steadfast support of his student-athletes and their success on and off the field, to the opportunities and friendships in which he has played a role for a remarkable coaching tree throughout the game of lacrosse.

Six active NCAA head coaches who either played for or coached alongside Pressler took the time to reflect on their memories, experiences and lessons learned from their time sharing a sideline. They include regional foes, conference rivals, and rising stars in the coaching profession. That loyalty between the six head coaches and Pressler inspired some of today's leaders in college lacrosse to speak about a coaching veteran many have learned from for decades.

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Mason Poli was a three-time All-America selection at Bryant and helped the Bulldogs to their first two NEC titles in 2012 and 2013. After a stint at Richmond, Poli joined the staff at former NEC foe Quinnipiac for the 2015 season, and was elevated to interim head coach in 2019, when he led the Bobcats to the MAAC title game. Poli led all first-year head coaches in victories and was officially named the program's head coach following the season.

Poli, whose grandfather coached Pressler in football at Washington & Lee, has been able to take lessons from his playing days in Smithfield and bring them to Hamden as he looks to replicate a successful program in the Northeast. That includes an annual trip to the Conaty Indoor Athletic Center for a preseason scrimmage.

"The scrimmage is always great," said Poli. "It's nice to get back to campus and it's a measuring stick for our program. We know what Bryant's going to be like – year in and year out, they're a disciplined team. We're trying to emulate our program after them. Coming into the season, it's a great opportunity for us to see where we stack up."

Poli's first collegiate coaching job was at Richmond, where former Pressler player Dan Chemotti has led the Spiders since their inaugural season in 2014. Chemotti, who helped guide Loyola to a national championship as offensive coordinator in 2012, became the first coach in Division I history to lead a first-year program to the NCAA Tournament when the Spiders won the Atlantic Sun in 2014.

Chemotti, who graduated from Duke in 2002, is thankful for the opportunities to stay connected with his collegiate coach, sometimes by a 6 a.m. text, but more meaningfully with an annual trip to Texas.

"He's an avid hunter, so every year, we go to Texas and we coordinate our arrival to the Dallas airport," said Chemotti. "We spend about two hours in the car together driving to our ultimate destination. That is arguably the most insightful and enjoyable two hours of my entire year, because I get to spend it just one-on-one with him in the car. I'm really lucky to have that."

Kevin Cassese was a teammate of Chemotti's for three seasons, a two-time captain for Pressler at Duke, and has been the head coach at Lehigh since 2008. The Mountain Hawks have played in five of the last eight Patriot League title games and regularly factor into the national top 20, ranking as high as No. 4 in 2012.

Cassese, who ranks second in wins and seasons coached in Lehigh's storied history, has also played a role in the on-field success of Team USA, including a gold medal at the 2010 World Championships, wearing the Red, White & Blue in England and playing again for Pressler as the team captain.

"Not only had I played for him, I'd also coached for him," said Cassese. "So, to put the gold medal around his neck at the World Championships was really special for me. It signified all the hard work that he put into the coaching profession, building lacrosse programs at Duke and Bryant, and then all the time invested in Team USA – the players, the staff, the support staff. To see him at the top of the sport – I believe that Team USA and the World Championships are the pinnacle of our sport – to see him with the gold medal around his neck was something really special to me and brought tears to my eyes. I knew how much he had worked for that moment and to see him achieve that moment and to be a part of helping him achieve that moment was something I'll never forget."

Taylor Wray, also a teammate of Cassese and Chemotti, squares off against Pressler every season as the head coach at NEC rival Saint Joseph's, where Wray has led the Hawks since 2012. A three-time NEC Coach of the Year, Wray has collected 73 victories on Hawk Hill, including 11 or more wins in four of the last seven seasons.

Wray keeps in touch weekly with his college coach turned conference opponent about lacrosse, but also about the things that matter off the field.

"There's not a holiday that goes by that I don't hear from him," said Wray. "On Mother's Day, he texted me, Coach Cassese, Coach Chemotti and a few of the other guys to make sure we were thanking our mothers."

Pressler's coaching staff at Duke while Chemotti, Cassese and Wray were on the field in Durham included Joe Alberici, who after an appearance in the 2005 national championship game went on to replace the retiring Jack Emmer as the head coach at Army. Alberici has led the Black Knights to two Patriot League titles and 13 wins in 2019 – the most since the program's founding in 1907.

Alberici recalls two elements of Pressler's leadership that have been key to the Bulldog head coach's success.

"He has a tremendous competitive nature that showed through in those teams," said Alberici. "The other thing was loyalty. It was big with him and I, and that's a great environment to work for a person when you know that they're being loyal to you."

Albert Mitchell served as Bryant's volunteer assistant in 2015 and will be embarking on his first season as a head coach in 2021 at Division II Anderson University. Despite sharing a sideline with Pressler for only one year, the support and guidance from his former boss have influenced him as he takes on his first head coaching opportunity.

"He's the first guy to shoot you a text after a big win," said Mitchell. "He's also the first guy to send a text in the morning after a tough game saying, 'Keep your head up. You guys fought hard, learn from it.' I know a lot of his former assistants, they're great friends of mine, and we just hope to be able to show the same loyalty and respect to him."

Chemotti echoes others on the reliability of a pregame or postgame text from Pressler and adds that in the era of iPhones, the Bryant head coach has added to his texting repertoire.

"You see many sides of him, but he never struck me as an emoji user," said Chemotti. "Coach P loves the emojis and his emoji texts bring us good luck."