TU adds Schreiber, women’s lacrosse
Zach BakerBy Zach Baker
Sports Writer
Tiffin University athletic director Lonny Allen said he sees in lacrosse what he saw in another sport many years ago.
"(Lacrosse) is booming, kind of like soccer did in the late '80s and early '90s," he said. "We want to try to be proactive."
So the university is adding women's lacrosse as a varsity sport. The program will begin play as a Division II independent, joining 42 other varsity programs in the division.
The school has named Mark Schreiber as its coach. Schreiber spent last spring coaching the University of Kentucky's club team, and before that built the club lacrosse program at Noblesville High School in Indiana.
Schreiber said the chance to start a program again appealed to him.
"It was fresh; I'm not undoing anyone else's style of play," he said. "I'm putting my kind of kids in place, my philosophy. I love Tiffin. The more I've been around, the thing that impressed me, is Lonny Allen and [TU President] Paul Marion are willing to use out-of-the-box thinking."
Allen said Schreiber's commitment to the sport impressed him.
"We're excited about Mark," Allen said. "He has great passion and enthusiasm for the game. That's what sold me on him."
Schreiber is clear about his philosophy - the team and program isn't about him.
"I trust my players with an awful lot of authority, and that separates me from most of the coaches in the country," Schreiber said. "During a timeout I won't talk to my team. It's a player's game and not a coach's game."
With the program planning to start play in a little more than a year, Schreiber said he will have to move fast.
"The first [goal] is to recruit players," he said. "There's been 15 players recruited out of Ohio. I've got to catch up. The second [thing] will be in the fall, getting the girls on the field and teaching them my style."
The third goal?
"Third thing is getting the schedule set up," he said.
Allen said he's hoping the sport is eventually picked up by the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, where the other Dragons' teams compete. Until then, he said he's optimistic.
"I think if Mark comes in here and does things he needs to do, within two or three years we can have a strong women's lacrosse program," he said.
Schreiber agreed.
"Depending on the maturity level of the girls, I think we'll look at a pretty good accounting of ourselves," he said.
