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NORTON - Former Widener College men's lacrosse coach Jamie Lockard will become the new head coach at Wheaton College. A Widener graduate, Lockard has been involved in eight of the team's nine NCAA Tournament appearances as either a player, assistant coach or head coach since 2000.

At the program's helm for the last five years, Lockard led the Pride to 58 wins, four NCAA Tournaments and four Middle Athletic Conference (MAC) Tournament titles. He was the 2010 MAC Coach of the Year.

"While it was extremely difficult to leave Widener, I am very excited about Wheaton's combination of academics and athletics, as well as the future of its men's lacrosse program," said Lockard.

Lockard's 2011 Widener team set a school record for wins in a season with 15 and established a new program standard for consecutive victories with 13. During his first season in 2007, Lockard guided the Pride to a 13-6 mark, an NCAA tourney victory and a national ranking as high as 18th.

In addition to serving on the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) All-America committee since 2008, Lockard was the NCAA compliance coordinator at Widener the last four years. "The Wheaton administration's vision and plan for building a more competitive men's lacrosse team is quite impressive, and I look forward to being a part of that," said Lockard. "I know Wheaton's academic reputation will help attract some of the best student-athletes, and in the very near future we hope to be competing for Pilgrim League championships."

Lockard was an assistant coach at Widener in 2006, playing an integral role in the Pride winning a MAC Tournament title and recording its first NCAA Tournament victory. As the team's offensive coordinator, he helped the Pride rank seventh in all of Division III in total goals and 12th in scoring average.

"I am very excited to welcome Jamie to Wheaton and look forward to the start of a new era for men's lacrosse here," said Wheaton Athletic Director John Sutyak. "Jamie's success both on and off the field as the head coach at Widener University the last five years is impressive. I know that he will recruit quality student-athletes to Wheaton while working toward our goal of consistently competing for and winning Pilgrim League championships. I have no doubt that Jamie will help move us forward in achieving that goal."

Prior to Widener, Lockard began his coaching career as an assistant at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pa. in 2004 and 2005. He worked as the defensive and recruiting coordinators. As a four-year player at Widener from 2000-03, Lockard turned in a standout career as the program's first two-time All-American.

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