Lafayette lacrosse has a new head coach, Jason Seidel, who has a long past with the sport.

As a player, Seidel attended Colorado State University and reached the Final Four in lacrosse playoffs. He then started his coaching career at CSU as an assistant under veteran coach Flip Naumburg.

When he moved to St. Louis, Seidel became an assistant coach at Parkway West for multiple seasons until he moved to head coaching at Chaminade for 10 years.

Today, Coach Seidel has great ambitions for the Lafayette lacrosse program.

“[I hope to] grow and maintain a very healthy youth program,” Seidel said.

Seidel is filling the spot of previous Lafayette coach, Ren Pettineli.

“Coach Pettineli is a hall of fame coach and a pioneer in Missouri laccrose. It will take five people to fill Coach Ren’s shoes,” Seidel said.

Pettineli coached the Lancers for 32 seasons and earned himself a spot in the Missouri Lacrosse Hall of Fame among other recognitions.

“There is definitely pressure to keep things running smoothly and effectively leading our young staff,” Seidel said.

At the varsity level, Coach Sidel also plans for a Conference Championship win and a playoff berth in the State tournament this season. 

Senior goalie, Sam Classen says Seidel brought a new culture to the lacrosse program.

“He has a different intensity, so all of us love him,” Classen said. “He can dumb things down and explain the game to newer players.”

Sam Classen says Seidel is a great coach.

“He’s super intense, he makes us all better and he is a great, loveable guy,” he said.