via PBA press release

By: Cole Helman | Palm Beach Atlantic Athletic Communications

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Palm Beach Atlantic has named Katy Richardson as the next head women’s lacrosse coach. Richardson, a graduate of Park Vista High School, returns home to West Palm Beach after spending the last two years as an assistant coach at SSC counterpart, Florida Southern. 

“I am humbled and excited to step into this new role as the head coach of the PBA Women’s Lacrosse team,” Richardson said. “I’m so grateful to Courtney Lovely Evans, Dr. Debra Schwinn, and everyone involved in the selection process, for the opportunity to serve at Palm Beach Atlantic. I can’t wait to return to my hometown to serve at a school that has such a lasting and transformative impact on its students and helps build a program in one of the most respected and competitive conferences in NCAA Division II. Since the program was launched, it has been one of my biggest prayers and ambitions to lead the program at Palm Beach Atlantic and give back to the greater lacrosse community in South Florida. Over the years God’s hand has guided me to places I never expected in the lacrosse world and those experiences prepared me for this opportunity and I’m so grateful for the journey that led me here.”

In her two seasons as an assistant with the Mocs, Richardson helped lead FSC to a combined 15-4 record since 2020. Florida Southern finished the 2021 season with a 9-1 record while being ranked No. 7 in the country and earning a piece of the SSC Regular Season Championship. The Mocs were also ranked No. 7 in the middle of Richardson’s first season with the squad before the season was ended due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In her stint in Lakeland, she coached six All-Americans, six All-Region student-athletes, and eight All-SSC honorees, including 2021’s SSC Player of the Year, Marina Jozokos.

“Leaving Florida Southern was far from an easy decision and I am forever grateful to Kara Reber, Drew Howard, and every player I had the opportunity to coach in my time there,” Richardson said. “My time at FSC has left a lasting mark on me and has made such a tremendous impact on my life. I am grateful for the opportunity to have learned from a coach who is so well respected and admired within our sport. I would not be the coach I am today without the years Kara took me under her wing knowing that this position at PBA was my eventual goal. I’m looking forward to competing against some of the best programs in the nation in the Sunshine State Conference and can’t wait to begin the process of building relationships with our players and community. The future is bright for Sailfish Women’s Lacrosse and I’m grateful for the opportunity to play a role in that future.”

Richardson brings expertise to the lacrosse scene in South Florida, having served as the Director of Education & Recruiting Coordinator for Lax Maniax, a club lacrosse program based in West Palm Beach from 2013-2020. During her time with the club, she helped the program launch locations in Tampa, Pensacola, and Greenville, S.C. She also created a centralized evaluation protocol used to evaluate over 300 middle and high school athletes while using data
visualization to communicate evaluation results to players, families, and coaches.

“I am extremely excited to have Katy Richardson as a part of the Sailfish family,” PBA Director of Athletics Courtney Lovely Evans said. “She is a strong leader with a desire to minister and develop young women while helping her student-athletes earn a meaningful degree on her way to building a winning tradition at PBA. She experienced success athletically and academically as a student-athlete, has an extremely high-level lacrosse IQ, and has a deep understanding of the Sunshine State Conference and South Region.”

After graduating from Park Vista, Richardson played for two years at Adelphi University where she was a part of a Panthers squad that won the NCAA DII National Championship in 2014. Richardson then transferred to NCAA Division I Presbyterian where she earned All-Big South honorable mention while leading the team in goals, assists, and points. She is still tied for the record at PC for most points and most goals in a game.

“Throughout the hiring process, it was clear that the mission and vision to provide a Christ-centered foundation is what makes PBA such a distinct and special campus to have the privilege of coaching and developing young women,” Richardson said. “While I know that the athletes I work with will improve physically, my hope is that the lessons they learn on the field of play will have a lasting impact long after they unlace their cleats for the final time.”

Richardson graduated with honors from Presbyterian with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. She will finish her master’s degree in organizational psychology in December 2021 from the University of Hartford.

She takes over a Sailfish team that will be entering its fifth season in 2022. Richardson looks to take a PBA squad that won its first SSC game last season to the next level. 

Courtesy of Palm Beach Atlantic Athletic Communications