SALEM, Va. – Roanoke Head Men's Lacrosse Coach Bill Pilat has named former Maroon Drew Bowers as the program's new assistant coach.
Bowers comes back to Salem from Kenyon College where he was an assistant coach for the Lords for three seasons. His duties included serving as the defensive coordinator, goalie coach and strength and conditioning coach while overseeing the recruiting operations of the program.
"We are excited to welcome Drew back home to Roanoke College," said Pilat. "Drew is an experienced college coach who had a fantastic three seasons with Kenyon College. His experience at Kenyon will enable him to successfully recruit qualified student-athletes to Roanoke College. I know that Drew is eager to begin working with our men's lacrosse players this fall. His expertise in physical conditioning will have big benefits to our team in the off season."
In 2016, he helped tutor goalie Patrick Shevelson to earning North Coast Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year and All-American accolades while also helping guide the team to an 11-win season.
In all, Bowers helped mentor six different players to all-conference honors which included a goalkeeper making the all-league league squad each year he was there.
"I am honored and excited for the opportunity to come back and coach at Roanoke College," said Bowers. "I am very thankful to Coach Pilat and Athletic Director Scott Alison for their trust and belief in me while providing a tremendous opportunity to further my career."
Before Kenyon he spent two seasons at the helm of nearby Salem High School Boys team. Bowers, ran all aspects of the program, on both sides of the ball, and guided his 2013 squad to a No. 3 state ranking.
Bowers played goalie for Roanoke from 2004-2008. During his time in Salem, he helped the Maroons appear in two national semifinal games and three Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) title games, winning two of them.
He received his bachelor's degree in exercise science from Roanoke in 2008 and became SCCC (strength and conditioning coach certified) through the CSCCa (Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association) in 2009.
Bowers was the head strength and conditioning coach at Kenyon and utilized his certification to serve as the strength and conditioning coach for several professional and collegiate programs in Vancouver, BC, Canada and Virginia, coaching NHL, MLS, CFL, and NFL athletes.
Bowers earned his master's degree in education, with an emphasis on positive coaching in the field of sports psychology from the University of Missouri during the spring of 2016.
