The University of Saint Mary has hired its first ever lacrosse coach as it builds toward the launch of men's and women's club-level lacrosse teams that will take the field in the Spring 2015 semester.

Lacrosse Coach Matt Kimsey comes to the University of Saint Mary Spires from the Blue Valley West Jaguars lacrosse program, which he coached for the past three years. He will shepherd the development of Saint Mary Men's & Women's Lacrosse—first as a club-level program for Spring 2015, and then as a varsity program the following year.



Kimsey already has several recruits committed to playing lacrosse at Saint Mary, and USM athletics is offering scholarships to student-athletes to come play lacrosse for the Spires.



"For me, the excitement is about building a new program here," Kimsey said. "The University of Saint Mary has a real community feel, a real family feel. Building a lacrosse program around that is a natural fit.



"We're going to value hard work and dedication—both classwork and on the field. I'm looking for players who will fit that ideal, who want to get playing time, and who want to come and start building a new legacy. They need to want to be part of something from the ground up."

Learn more about USM Lacrosse at www.stmary.edu/lacrosse

Kimsey expects the club-level teams to play against some of the local Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association and Women's Collegiate Lacrosse Association teams to begin. He also plans on hosting a tournament for local high school-level clubs in the fall.



Lacrosse is not currently a varsity sport in USM's home conference—the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC). Once the USM teams go varsity, Kimsey expects to seek out opposition from around the NAIA.



USM Athletic Director Rob Miller praised Kimsey as a dedicated and enthusiastic coach and called the addition of lacrosse "a great opportunity for USM, our student-athletes, and local and regional lacrosse players—who don't have many area college lacrosse programs to choose from."



Contact Coach Kimsey at [email protected] for more info on USM Lacrosse.



Saint Mary has 12 varsity sports programs—football, volleyball, baseball, softball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's soccer, cross country, and track & field—along with co-ed cheerleading and dance and a new club-level lacrosse program set to begin in Spring 2015. Visit www.gospires.com to learn more about USM athletics.