St. Thomas, Gross Hit 200-Win Mark
ST. PAUL, Minn. – With the win over No. 2 North Dakota State on Sunday, St. Thomas reached the 200-win plateau as a program.
Since their first game in 2005, the Tommies have amassed a record of 200-30 (87.0%) and are the only MCLA program besides Brigham Young to register 200 wins in that period.
The one constant during that time: Brian Gross.
Gross, the current head coach of St. Thomas, played on those first teams in the MCLA, became an assistant coach and then head man in 2015.
Since taking over at that time, he has an overall record of 56-7, a conference mark of 14-3 with four UMLC titles and one MCLA National Championship.
But he’s been around for all 200 of the Tommies’ triumphs.
"I've always been proud of the role that I've played in taking a team that was not the most organized or serious team my freshman year and turning it into a program that is a perennial championship contender,” Gross said. “Reaching a milestone like this is obviously something that our whole program accomplished together.
“Our alumni and their parents, past coaches, and this year's group all deserve the credit for those wins; I've just had one of the best seats in the house for them all. I'm extremely grateful that I've been able to be a part of St. Thomas lacrosse for this long."
Gross and the St. Thomas team will find out on Sunday evening who they will be playing in the 2018 MCLA National Championships powered by Under Armour, which takes place in Salt Lake City from May 7-12.