After finishing off his collegiate career as Marquette’s first four-time All-American and four-time team captain last year, Mason Woodward has now taken on a new role as an assistant coach with the men’s lacrosse team.
In his five seasons wearing the blue and gold, the former defenseman recorded a program-record 265 ground balls and ranks second in program history with 84 caused turnovers.
After the 2024 season ended, and now-head coach Jake Richard was hired in his new position, he and Woodward remained in contact. Several conversations later, and he was back at Valley Fields.
“I always knew I wanted to get into college coaching, and I knew there was potential to try and coach at Marquette, whether it was being an assistant or being a volunteer,” Woodward said. “I told him [Richard] I was super interested in the job, and we continued our conversations, which eventually just led to me getting hired.”
It’s almost as if the Marquette lacrosse Gods did a copy and paste, as Richard followed a remarkably similar path: college, then professional leagues, then coaching.
Woodward was the first Marquette player selected in the first round of the Premier Lacrosse League College Draft. So then, it was time for the four-time USILA All-American to take his talent and experience to Salt Lake City, Utah, where the Utah Archers selected him with the eighth overall pick. Woodward was able to help the Archers to their second consecutive PLL championship last fall in his rookie season.
“Mason is one of the best defenders in the world and his commitment to Marquette over the years has been second to none,” Richard said upon his hire to Marquette Athletics. “Mason has a special ability to make those around him better on and off the field. He embodies the values we hope to build upon, and we are thrilled to keep him in Milwaukee.”
One key difference between the two coaches is that Woodward recently played alongside many of the athletes on the current Golden Eagles roster, giving him unique insight into his former teammates’ style of play. But for some of the players, he isn’t just a coach, he is someone who they’ve seen play for a long time.
Hailing from Towson, Maryland, Woodward, graduate student defenseman Ryan Kilcoyne and graduate student long stick midfielder David Lamarca grew up within a 20-minute radius of one another. Woodward was a year older than Kilcoyne and Lamarca, but they all played in the same high school league where they would face each other sometimes.
“We’ve been watching him for a long time,” Kilcoyne said. “From the moment we joined Marquette, he was just a natural leader… kind of teaching us how to play Marquette defense before we even stepped onto campus.”
Woodward will fight the urge to suit up and play alongside his former teammates again. Now and then, you’ll see him dressed to help with certain drills, if they need an extra defender or an extra man due to injury.
Beyond joining in on the physical aspect of the game, Woodward’s experience in the PLL has translated into the aspects of his new position with the Golden Eagles.
“A ton of it [PLL gameplay] is based on personnel,” Woodward said. “Learning who you’re guarding I think has actually helped me a ton coaching wise. I can watch film, cut up personnel clips and decipher an opponent’s tendencies so I can relay that information to the guys.”
After not qualifying for the Big East tournament the past two seasons and starting with a 3-3 record this year, Woodward wants to take advantage of big moments and improve from them.
“Just taking steps back and looking at the team as a whole rather than just as individual parts, is the coolest part about coaching so you kind of get to see where these guys are at,” Woodward said. “I think we have a great group of guys that are on a mission and trying to do something great this year.”
This article was written by Raquel Ruiz. She can be reached at raquel.ruiz@marquette.edu or on Twitter/X @RaquelRuizMU.