Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 7/11/11
From Press Releases
Jamie Lockard has stepped down as Widener’s men’s lacrosse coach to head to Wheaton (MA) College as its men’s lacrosse coach.
Lockard leaves an unprecedented legacy as both a coach and a player in the program’s storied history. He had a hand in eight of the team’s nine NCAA Tournament appearances and eight of the squad’s 12 Middle Atlantic Conference titles.
As a coach, Lockard led the Pride to a 58-36 record over five seasons that included four conference titles and four trips to the NCAA Tournament. He easily has the most victories of any coach in their first five seasons in the program’s 41-year history and leaves a mere seven shy of catching his college coach Jamie Steele as the school’s winningest leader (65-31). This past season, Lockard helped the Pride break the school record for most victories with a 15-3 mark and a team-best 13-game winning streak.
His third league crown in 2010 also was a memorable one as Widener became the first team in MAC Tournament history to capture the title with three road wins. In leading a unit that was decimated by injuries all season, Lockard was named the MAC Coach of the Year.
In his first season as head coach in 2007, Lockard guided Widener to an 8-5 win at Denison for the program’s second NCAA Tournament win. The year before in his only campaign as the Pride’s assistant coach, Widener upended Kenyon, 11-9, in the NCAA Tournament.
Wheaten, a member of the Pilgrim League, was 3-1 overall in 2011 and 2-3 in the conference.
As a standout player for Widener from 2000-03, Lockard ended with 34 goals and 125 assists. He is the program’s first two-time All-America, leading the team to three MAC titles and three trips to the NCAA Tournament.
His last two seasons were the most memorable, in which he was tabbed first team all-conference, first team All-ECAC and Honorable Mention All-America each year. Lockard had 10 goals, 50 assists, won 179-of-253 face-offs (.708) and notched 163 ground balls in 2002. He was named the MAC Player of the Year.
Lockard kept his red-hot play going in 2003 with 13 goals, 48 assists, 155 ground balls and won 190-of-284 face-offs (.669). For his effort in leading the team to a second straight conference title and NCAA Tournament berth, the 2003 graduate with a degree in Business Management was named Widener’s Male Senior Athlete of the Year.
“I would like to thank (director of athletics) Jack Shafer and the Widener administration for the opportunity to lead Widener men’s lacrosse and the subsequent support they provided,” said Lockard. “My last five years as head coach at my alma mater provided me with some unparalleled memories.
“I have built a lot of great relationships and that is what I will miss the most. Widener is a wonderful place to work and I really enjoyed my time here.”
A national search is underway to find Lockard’s replacement.
