The Gators finished 20-3, led by head coach Amanda O’Leary and assistant coaches Regy Thorpe, Nicole Levy and Christina Esposito.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Florida lacrosse head coach Amanda O’Leary and assistant coaches Regy Thorpe, Nicole Levy and Christina Esposito have been named IWLCA South Region Coaching Staff of the Year, announced by the IWLCA Thursday afternoon. They will be honored at the IWLCA Convention in Tampa, Fla. in November.
It is the second time the Gators have took home this accolade, as O’Leary was named IWLCA South Region Coach of the Year in 2012. The Orange and Blue had a historic season, winning a school record 20 games, in route to a 20-3 season and the program’s first Final Four appearance in 12 years. O’Leary made history along the way, earning her 400th career win on May 10 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against North Carolina. She became just the fourth coach in division l history to reach this milestone and the ninth coach in any NCAA division.
UF concluded the season ranked No. 4 in the ILWomen/IWLCA final poll, while conquering their 10th consecutive conference tournament title and 12th regular season championship overall. The Gators went 6-0 in AAC play, good for their 10th time going undefeated in conference play.
Florida was among the nation’s best in all phases of the game, ranking first in scoring offense (17.61 goals/game), points per game (26.48), scoring margin (+9.09), shot percentage (.550), and clearing percentage (.959), along with ranking second in free-position percentage (.639), third in assists per game (8.87), fifth in save percentage (.515), sixth in draw controls per game (17.70) and seventh in scoring defense (8.52 goals allowed/game). Along with compiling a 7-3 record against ranked opponents, the Gators won 12 games by double-digits, as they scored 20 or more goals nine times and held their opponent to under 10 goals 17 times.
The coaching staff anchored the program to a 20-game winning streak, good for the longest streak in the country this season and in school history. Florida’s season totals of 405 goals, 204 assists, 609 points and 407 draw controls were all records for the most in a season.
Below are the IWLCA Coaching Staff of the Year awards for the 2024 season.
National Coaching Staff of the Year
Boston College
Mid-Atlantic Region
Stony Brook
Northeast Region
Boston College
South Region
Florida
West/Midwest Region
Northwestern
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