SARASOTA, Fla. — New College of Florida (NCF) announced the appointment of Kate Leavell as head coach for women’s lacrosse. Leavell, a Sarasota resident, has a long track record of success coaching at the high school and collegiate levels. She is also an accomplished author and speaker whose experience developing leadership and highly motivated teams in a variety of fields.
“Adding women’s lacrosse and a leader of Kate’s caliber as head coach demonstrate New College’s commitment to attracting and educating top scholar-athletes,” said Interim President Richard Corcoran.
“Kate is one of the nation’s premier leadership experts,” said NCF Athletic Director Mariano Jimenez, Jr. “Her ability to connect teams and build culture is going to be a major asset to our community.”
Leavell is a former USA Lacrosse coaches education trainer and Positive Coaching Alliance trainer. Her collegiate coaching experience includes stints at Georgia State, Oglethorpe University, University of Colorado – Colorado Springs, and Adams State University. She also coached highly successful high school teams in Georgia and Minnesota, and was the Minnesota high school coach of the year in 2010.
“I’m excited to build a program that expands the opportunities available for young women to play lacrosse at the next level while pursuing an excellent education,” said Leavell. “New College of Florida is a very special place where these student-athletes will be able to grow in all areas that lead to success in a beautiful setting. As hard as we will train and compete in lacrosse, we will also train and develop leadership skills, confidence, connection, and embracing the unique awesome that each of us brings to make our team inimitable!”
Leavell is the author of SUPERPOWER; An Inspiring Story to Overcome Self-Doubt and Unleash Your Authentic Greatness and Confessions of an Imperfect Coach, and co-author of the Wall Street Journal best-seller Stick Together. She also wrote the Coaches Emergency Practice Guide for youth lacrosse.
NCF launched its intercollegiate athletics department earlier this year with six teams starting play in 2023-2024. The Mighty Banyans’ first year of competition in women’s lacrosse will be the 2024-2025 academic year.