Sachem alum and former varsity assistant coach Rich Petillo has been named as the new head men’s lacrosse coach at Mitchell College in New London, Connecticut.
Petillo, who helped Sachem win its first state title in lacrosse in 1979, has quickly gone through the high school and college lacrosse coaching ranks en route to his first collegiate head coaching gig at Mitchell.
He was a varsity assistant at Sachem North before serving as the head coach at Harborfields High School and a volunteer assistant at Hartwick College.
“I’m excited to have the opportunity to direct this program to national prominence, ultimately establishing Mitchell College as a destination program not only for lacrosse players, but for students in general,” said Petillo.
Mitchell was 7-9 last season and lost in the Northeast Conference Championship final.
“We are happy and excited to add Rich to our coaching staff,” said Mitchell Director of Athletics Dana Fulmer Garfield. “During the interview process it became apparent that his experience as a college recruiter, as well as his ties within the lacrosse community, will help to build on the foundation that is already in place at Mitchell College. I’m confident that he is the right person to take our program to the next level.”
Petillo joins some notable alumni who are currently head lacrosse coaches at the collegiate level, including Joe Amplo at Marquette and Brian Brecht at Rutgers. Other alums are currently serving as assistants in college as well, including Jay Mauro at Stony Brook, Terry Mangan at St. John’s, Jaclyn Pandolf at LIU Brooklyn and Katie Mollot at Hofstra.
-Words by Chris R. Vaccaro