Andrew Towers, former assistant men's lacrosse coach, has been tapped to head Dartmouth's men's lacrosse program by Athletic Director Josie Harper, the College announced late last week. Towers will replace former head coach Bill Wilson, who announced his resignation in early May.
Towers' selection comes after a national search begun in the wake of Wilson's resignation. At points throughout the search, InsideLacrosse.com had reported that John Raba of Wesleyan and Mike Daly of Tufts were interviewing for the position.
Towers, who joined the Big Green lacrosse staff in 2005, will take the helm of men's program in the wake of Dartmouth's worst season in over a decade.
Finishing the 2009 campaign with a record of 4-11, the Dartmouth men's lacrosse team was outscored by their Ivy League opponents by 57 points in the regular season, and finished last in the league.
Towers, who has worked as an assistant coach for both Yale University and his own alma mater, Brown University, will look to help the Big Green post more success against Ivy League rivals next year.
"I think [Towers] knows what needs to be changed and will improve the overall performance of the team," goalkeeper Fergus Campbell '12 said.
Towers has nearly 20 combined years of experience as a player and coach, according to a College press release. Before coming to Dartmouth, he served as the head coach of the University of Hartford during the 2004 season, and has also worked as an assistant coach for Fairfield University, guiding the team to its first NCAA appearance and first Great Western Lacrosse League Championship, according to the release.
"I know for a fact that everyone was thrilled to have Towers as head coach," defenseman Andrew Pollack '10 said. "I think the administration did a fantastic job by being fair and open in filling the position."
Andrew Gagel '10 echoed his teammate's excitement, pointing particularly to Towers' experience and knowledge of the team as an asset.
"[Towers] brings an up-tempo and an inspiring attitude to the team," he said. "It will definitely be an easy transition because Towers already been on the team for five years."
Dartmouth will likely face strong Ivy League opposition in its upcoming season. Princeton and Cornell are currently ranked third and sixth in the nation, respectively. Harvard and Brown are also considered to be strong contenders in the league.
Pollack said he was optimistic about Dartmouth's potential for success.
"We're not scared of any one of those teams," Pollack said. "It's just fuel for the fire. We have the defense to slow any offense."
A 1994 graduate of Brown, Towers was a one-time Ivy League Player of Year and two-time All-American during his time on the field. He led the Bears to three NCAA appearances, holding Brown's record for most career goals in its men's lacrosse program.
After college, Towers played in the Major Indoor Lacrosse League and National Lacrosse League for five years. He also made appearances in Major League Lacrosse, where he earned All-Star honors in 2002.
