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Quinnipiac’s lacrosse coach is no stranger to adversity
(Photo: Rob Rasmussen/Quinnipiac Athletics)

Quinnipiac’s lacrosse coach is no stranger to adversity

HAMDEN, Conn. (BVM) — After being named head coach of the Quinnipiac University men’s lacrosse team in 2018, Mason Poli experienced a transition into a head coaching position far different than any before. 

Mason Poli, a 2013 graduate from Bryant University was named interim head coach of the Bobcats in 2018 amid the school’s release of former head coach Eric Fekete, before taking over the role full-time the following the season. 

While at Bryant, Poli compiled one of the most decorated long-pole lacrosse careers in NCAA history. Poli led the nation in long-pole scoring in both his junior and senior seasons which led to two Tewaaraton Semifinalist Awards. The standout long-pole was also named USILA Honorable Mention All-American in 2011, 2012 and 2013, while being named to the NEILA All-New England and Northeast Conference First Teams those same years.

(Photo: Rob Rasmussen/Quinnipiac Athletics)

After his four-year run with the Bulldogs which came to a close in 2013, Poli was drafted by the Charlotte Hounds of Major League Lacrosse in the fourth round. Poli’s success on the field continued as he led the MLL in long-pole scoring with six goals, three two-point goals, and one assist for 10 points all in 2014. 

While playing professional lacrosse, Poli began his coaching career serving as a volunteer coach at Richmond University in 2014 before joining the Bobcats coaching staff in 2015. Poli experienced a great deal of success while acting as an assistant coach for the Bobcats including a conference championship appearance in 2015, being a part of the MAAC Conference championship team and earning an NCAA tournament appearance in 2016, and a regular season championship in 2018. 

Poli became interim head coach during a scandal that resulted in a team suspension during the fall semester of 2018, which included the release of former head coach Eric Fekete. The transition was certainly a unique one as Poli was thrown into a head coaching position of a team that was restricted from practicing or meeting for the duration of the fall semester. At a time when most teams are practicing and building up for the spring season, the young head coach was planning how he would keep his team motivated through this time.

As the fall semester came to a close along with the suspension, the team was back on the field for the 2019 spring season. One challenge still remained for Poli however, the seniors were suspended from competing in the first five games of the season. This situation left the new head coach with little experience to work with on the field for the beginning of the season. 

Starting all underclassmen seems like a huge disadvantage to many, but Poli credits the underclassmen’s success which eventually led to stringing together two wins in the five games. 

“Punctuality and attention to detail, all those little things added up and gave our young guys success,” Poli stated in an interview with Lax Sports Network.

As the seniors came back to the field, the team continued their streak of success against all odds. Coach Poli led the Bobcats to a six-game winning streak ultimately earning the two seed in the conference tournament in which they fell just short in the championship game. 

(Photo: Rob Rasmussen/Quinnipiac Athletics)

“The guys, they pushed themselves, ran organized drills when there was no one there to push for them, did what they could with what they were allowed to do,” Poli said.

 In 2019, Poli led all first-year Division I head coaches in total wins with nine, and winning percentage at .562. After the Bobcat’s shockingly successful season, Coach Poli was named the official head coach of the Quinnipiac University Men’s Lacrosse team. 

Heading into Poli’s first year as the official head coach for the 2020 campaign. The Bobcats had a different look to their team after graduating 12 seniors. Many of the graduating seniors were big contributors to the teams success, leaving the team once again with little on field experience.

The inexperience was expressed when the Bobcats got off to a slow start to the season going winless in its first six games before another tragedy hit the program. This time, Poli and the Bobcats were not the only ones who suffered. 

The team, along with all the other teams across the country, was informed that the season would come to an end due to the COVID-19 pandemic. For the first year official head coach, this was another roadblock he would have to overcome. 

Control what you can control,” Poli said. “We talk about facing adversity in all aspects of life and figuring out what you can control in those moments to improve your situation. The limitations and restrictions around COVID-19 were a great challenge to many in trying to get access to equipment and facilities. These challenges would really show how bad you want to achieve your goals. If you are able to overcome these obstacles, you can overcome anything.” 

Over the summer the team had weekly meetings via zoom to ensure everyone was staying on top of everything they needed to do in order to see success for the coming season.

“Making sure all of our players were doing well mentally,” Poli explained as the biggest challenge he faced. “Typically, we are able to tell how our players are doing through our daily interactions at practice. In a virtual setting we were only exposed to them on a limited basis.” 

This challenge was yet another obstacle presented to the youthful head coach in only his first year in the position.

(Photo: Rob Rasmussen/Quinnipiac Athletics)

Following the disappointing 2020 school year, Quinnipiac University welcomed back its students to campus for the 2021 school year. Coach Poli had the team confident and hungry. Even including all the restrictions, testing, contact tracing, and other obstacles that the COVID-19 pandemic presented, the team under Coach Poli preserved and got the season off to a great start capturing four wins in the first six games. 

When everything was seeming to go forward for Poli and his team, adversity struck again as if the past two seasons didn’t include enough for the new head coach. 

Ensuing weekly school contract tracing, Poli was made aware of positive cases on the team. Resulting from this, the Bobcat’s season was halted once again. This time, a week before the conference playoffs. After a few days of not competing, the team was told that they would have to withdraw from the conference championship due to the length of the quarantine, thus bringing the season to an early end once again. Poli had to break the news via a team zoom call. 

“These challenges would really show how bad we wanted to achieve our goals,” Poli explained to his team. “If we are able to overcome these obstacles, we can overcome anything.”

For coach Poli, adversity has been no stranger. The young head coach has seen the ups, downs, and everything in between when it comes to coaching a division-one sport. For such a new coach, the uncontrollable burdens that hit the program demonstrate the leadership and dedication required to lead a team to success both on the field and off the field.  

As he continues to move the program forward, Poli knows what the future keys to success are for the Bobcats, in what is looking like a promising 2022 season. 

“We needed to continue to develop a culture, building on self-accountability,” Poli said in an interview with Lax Sports Network.