Joe Proud Named New Men's Coach at Vassar
Posted: Mon Jun 06, 2005 9:29 amFormer Cal Coach Joe Proud finally has his first varsity head coaching gig. Proud led the Cal Golden Bears to the 1998 MDIA National Title and was a former member of the MDIA Board of Directors. Congrats Joe!!
POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (June 6, 2005) -- Joe Proud, who has been a collegiate lacrosse coach since 1997 at Cal-Berkeley, Cornell, Vermont and SUNY Plattsburgh, has been named today as head men's lacrosse coach at Vassar College. The announcement was made by Sharon Beverly, Director of Athletics & Physical Education.
Proud becomes Vassar's 6th head lacrosse coach since Vassar became a Division III varsity program in 1988.
Proud, a 1994 Duke graduate, has coached collegiate lacrosse since 1997 when he took over the University of California, Berkeley (Cal) lacrosse program, a member of the USLIA. In his six years at (1997-2002), the Golden Bears compiled a 76-29 record (.724) with a post-season 20-11 record (.645). Following a rebuilding first year, Cal captured one USLIA National Championship (1998), two WCLL Conference Championships (1998, 2000) and made five straight appearances at the USLIA National Championship Tournament, finishing in the top-ten each of those years. Proud was named Coach of the Year by the WCLL in 1998 and by Cal Sport Clubs in 2001.
"We are extremely happy to have someone of Joe Proud's experience as our men's lacrosse coach," said Beverly. "Joe's passion, enthusiasm and knowledge of lacrosse will serve the College well as we build our program in the competitive Liberty League."
Following his tenure at Cal, Proud joined Cornell University as an assistant coach for the '02-'03 year, working primarily with the offense and face-off unit. The Big Red finished the season ranked 9th nationally and won its first share of the Ivy League Championship since 1987.
Proud then joined the University of Vermont, one of the top defensive teams in Division I, as the first assistant. At UVM, he worked with all aspects of the game including offense, defense, face-offs and goaltending as well as scouting opponents and recruiting. Proud spent the '04-'05 year as an assistant at SUNY Plattsburgh, helping one of his closest friends build a fledgling Div. III program. He coached all aspects of the game, with a focus on offense, face-offs and transition. Following a 2004 record of 2-10, PSU improved to 6-6 while narrowly missing the SUNYAC playoffs.
Additionally, Proud has served as head coach for the 2001 USA West team, an all-star squad comprised entirely of college players from the West Coast. The team spent two weeks touring England, Wales and the Czech Republic compiling a 6-1 record in international play including winning the Prague Cup. He served as Secretary of the USLIA Board of Directors during for the '01-'02 year, a five-person Board responsible for administrating the 140+ team USLIA. Proud also contributes periodically for Inside Lacrosse, writing articles, editorials and instructional pieces. Currently, he is developing Grass Roots Lacrosse, a private lacrosse school aimed at teaching lacrosse, team-building and leadership skills to high school and middle school players in developing lacrosse areas during the summer and off-season.
Proud grew up in Camillus, NY, just outside Syracuse. He attended West Genesee HS, where he was he was an all-league lacrosse, hockey and football player, captaining the lacrosse team his senior year. He went on to Duke University, where he graduated in 1994 with a B.A. in Public Policy Studies. While at Duke, he was a four-year letter winner, captain and All-American defenseman for the top-10 Division. I program. During his time there, Duke achieved its highest national ranking and furthest advancement in the NCAA tournament in school history at the time.