Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 7/12/24
From Press Release
Keegan Wilkinson (St. Joseph’s University) – who was instrumental in supporting the Edward Taylor Coombs Foundation and coached Eddie Coombs in his only year of college player before tragically passing away – has stepped down after 13 seasons as Marist’s head men’s lacrosse coach and a 17-year association with the program to take the head job at Severn School (MD) in the famed MIAA.
Current associate head coach Dave Scarcello will be the Red Foxes’ new head coach, bringing over 10 years’ experience with the program as both a student-athlete and coach.
“Marist will be forever grateful for the outstanding success Keegan has brought to our men’s lacrosse program over his 17-year tenure,” Marist Director of Athletics Tim Murray said. “Coach Wilkinson had outstanding command and showed great leadership in building his program, making it the most successful men’s lacrosse program in the MAAC. His outstanding work ethic, tireless efforts in recruiting, and strong culture that he created were embraced by every student-athlete he coached. I wish him and his family nothing but success moving forward.”
Wilkinson departs Marist as the winningest head coach in program history, and one of the most successful coaches in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference history. Wilkinson posted a 99-85 overall record and 52-25 mark in MAAC regular season play. He is tied for the most conference championships (three) of any coach in conference history, and he reached the 50-win career milestone faster than any coach in conference history. He was a three-time MAAC Coach of the Year who was named to the MAAC’s 40th Anniversary Men’s Lacrosse Team in 2020. The Red Foxes reached the MAAC championship game six times in his tenure, including four straight years from 2014-17.
Wilkinson’s impact at Marist extended beyond the playing field, as evidenced by his establishing an annual award honoring Edward Coombs, a Marist midfielder from Hatboro-Horsham who passed away less than six weeks after Wilkinson became head coach in 2011. Coombs’ number 34 is now presented on an annual basis to a senior who embodies Coombs’ best qualities: passion, determination, energy, and a great teammate and member of the community.
Wilkinson’s program brought the Eddie Coombs Fall tournament to Hatboro-Horsham for several years after Eddie’s passing. The tournament has been run at Marist in recent years. The Edward Taylor Coombs Foundation — started by his family – also was created to work with high school and college students on the issue of responsible decision making through forums, seminars, videos and other educational programs.
See video interview on Eddie Coombs Fall Ball tourney from 2015 on Phillylacrosse.com – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btCGdrn7Qcs
Under Wilkinson’s leadership, the Red Foxes won MAAC championships in 2015, 2019, and 2023. The 2015 team went 14-4 overall, 6-0 MAAC play, and earned the program’s first win in NCAA play with an opening round victory over Bryant. That year, he was one of six finalists for USILA Division I Coach of the Year. His tenure included success against top programs, with victories over Army, Marquette, Towson, Hofstra, Drexel, Stony Brook, Air Force, Michigan, Colgate and High Point. The Red Foxes’ 17-9 home triumph over #9/#7 Army on Feb. 18, 2020, was the highest-ranked opponent Marist defeated in program history.
In Wilkinson’s tenure, the Red Foxes had 14 MAAC major award winners, 33 First Team All-MAAC selections, 24 Second Team All-MAAC honorees, and 20 MAAC All-Rookie Team selections. Seven of his players went on to play in either Major League Lacrosse or the Premier Lacrosse League. He recruited and developed the program’s first USILA All-Americans (four) and USILA Scholar All-Americans (11). A total of 11 Red Foxes participated in the USILA North-South Game in his tenure, and Wilkinson served as the North head coach twice himself.
Wilkinson and his wife, Jessica, are the parents of two children: daughter, Ryan (3); and son, James (nine months). Jessica Wilkinson was head coach of the Marist women’s lacrosse program from 2011-23 and played for the Marist women’s lacrosse team from 2005-08.
“The last 17 years at Marist have been truly amazing and while leaving is incredibly difficult, I have great confidence in my decision knowing that the program is positioned for tremendous success moving forward,” Wilkinson said. “I am proud to have established a culture that embraced the challenge to work as hard as we could to put the team in a position to compete for a conference championship every year while also honoring the life and legacy of Edward Taylor Coombs. The years that followed have shaped Marist into the strongest and most successful men’s lacrosse program in the history of the MAAC. I will forever cherish the relationships built with our student-athletes, families, alumni and staff. While a piece of my heart will always be in Tenney Stadium, the time is right for my family to take our next steps, and for me professionally to move on to a new challenge. To all of my amazing players over the years, from the bottom of my heart, thank you.”
