Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 6/29/23 – From Press Release
Cabrini University Vice President of Athletics & Student Engagement Kate Corcoran has announced that Assistant Coach Tommy DeLuca will be elevated to Head Coach for the final season for Cabrini Lacrosse in 2024.
DeLuca will replace Hall of Fame coach Steve Colfer, who stepped down last week to take the head boys’ lacrosse job at Episcopal Academy. (see story here).
DeLuca is a 2021 Cabrini grad and was a key member of the 2019 Cabrini national championship team. He joined the men’s lacrosse coaching staff in August 2021.
A four-time All-Atlantic East Conference performer and two-time Defensive Player of the Year, DeLuca moved into the coaching ranks after a career that included 12 All-America honors.
The Apex, NC native capped his playing career as the nation’s top defensive player according to the nation’s coaches, as DeLuca was named 2021 William C. Stiles Most Outstanding Defenseman by the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) after a season that saw him pair 37 caused turnovers and 58 ground balls. The honor came with a USILA All-America First Team nod, making DeLuca just the program’s seventh First Team All-American.
In 2021, DeLuca, a two-time captain for the Cavaliers, broke the program’s record for caused turnovers, closing his career with 173, while his 255 ground balls and 83 games played rank second. During the Cavaliers championship season in 2019, DeLuca also set the program’s single-season caused turnover mark with 61 and owns the three of the top seven single-season performances in that category.
DeLuca also lent his voice to Cabrini’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) as a four year participant, including two years as one of Cabrini’s two representatives on the Atlantic East SAAC.
DeLuca also coaches with the Team TEN Lacrosse Club.
DeLuca completed his bachelor’s degree in business administration with a-minor in sports management in 2020 and is currently working towards his master’s degree in business administration.
Colfer guided the Cavaliers to an NCAA Championship, 329 career victories, and 22 consecutive conference titles.
Colfer spent 26 seasons at Cabrini, 23 as the head coach. He coached teams to 21 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and has been inducted into the Eastern Pennsylvania chapter of the United States Lacrosse Hall of Fame. In 2019, his team won Cabrini’s first-ever team NCAA Championship.
Under Colfer’s tenor, the Cabrini head coach produced a phenomenal 92 All-Americans, six Cabrini Hall of Fame Inductees, and three Players of the Year including: DeLuca (Defense Player of the Year), Jordan Krug (Offensive Player of the Year, and Corey Elmer (Most Outstanding Player in Division III).
It’s not just those accolades that set Colfer apart, said Kate Corcoran, Vice President for Athletics and Student Engagement.
“For those who know and work with Steve, as I fortunately have been able to do, his integrity and the amazing impact he’s had on the lives of countless student-athletes will be the legacy that he leaves at Cabrini,” she said. “I know all in the Cabrini family join me in wishing him the very best in the next chapter of his storied career.”
Colfer’s career path is now taking him to the Episcopal Academy, a private academy in nearby Newtown Square, where he will serve as Assistant Athletic Director and Head Boys Lacrosse Coach.
“Being the head of the Cabrini men’s lacrosse program for the last 23 years has been the experience of a lifetime,” said Coach Colfer. It has been the most rewarding experience any coach could have ever hoped for in a coaching career. My love for my current and former players has always been unconditional and will continue to be always.
“Our success on the field is over-shadowed by the success these young men have had in life and I couldn’t be prouder to have been their coach. I want to thank all my players, their families, support staff, and my assistant coaches for their unrelenting dedication to the Cabrini Lacrosse Program. You did something that can never be taken from us. You will be in my heart forever…HARD WORK…be 1-0 today…and I’ll see you tomorrow. “
