COACHES

Sun Valley Lacrosse coaches include Bronze, Silver and Gold Level Certified Coaches by USA Lacrosse with expansive lacrosse experience, having played on Division 1, Division 3 and MCLA college programs including:

University of Denver, Stanford, Northeastern, Notre Dame, Duke, UCSD, Williams College, Yale, Middlebury, Brown, and Hobart.

Coaches are SafeSport certified and pass a background check administered through USA Lacrosse. Athlete well-being is the centerpiece of the culture through abuse prevention, education, and accountability. Youth Coaches also pass an additional background check administered through IMLAX Utah.

The Sun Valley Lacrosse coaching staff is filled with people who love the game of lacrosse and are committed to working with our community’s young athletes. Some are moms, some are dads, some just love the game. All are committed to our mission and volunteer their time.

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CONOR QUINN · Co-Founder of Sun Valley Lacrosse, Inc. · Chairman of the Board of Directors · USA LACROSSE BOYS COACH GOLD CERTIFICATION · USA LACROSSE GIRLS COACH GOLD CERTIFICATION ·

Conor Quinn is from Ridgewood, New Jersey and attended The Peddie School, playing Varsity lacrosse for Coach Bob Turco and Tri-State Lacrosse. As a 4-year starter, Conor was a 2-time State Champion, Captain, 1st Team All State and still holds the New Jersey state record for most points in a game with 9 goals & 2 assists. He was inducted into the Peddie School Sports Hall of Fame in 2006, for his key role as the starting crease attackman during the lacrosse team's undefeated 15-0 season, where the team was ranked 5th in the nation, amidst some of the most storied and respected high school programs in the nation. Conor played Division-1 Lacrosse at the University of Denver, graduating with a degree in Communications and Sociology. Since then, he has coached youth lacrosse players on teams, at camps, in clinics and at tournaments. He is a founder and director of Cal Coast Sports Ventures, a southern California based lacrosse company that hosts lacrosse tournaments multiple times throughout the year, including the Santa Barbara Showdown, a premiere Lacrosse Tournament on the Santa Barbara polo fields for U-9 through U-18 Boys and Girls lacrosse teams. Conor is also the Founder of Oscar Wilde Spirits, which recently launched Wilde Irish Gin. Conor lives in Sun Valley, Idaho with his two daughters.

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Nick Ossello · Lead Advisor to Boys Lacrosse Program

Nick Ossello is a Wheat Ridge, Colorado native where he attended Wheat Ridge High School. While playing at Notre Dame, Ossello was an Honorable Mention All-American midfielder and a five year letter winner with one being a linebacker on the Notre Dame football team. Ossello was also an assistant coach at the Air Force Academy for the 2018 season. Ossello started three games for the PLL Redwoods LC during the 2019 season and travelled with Redwoods to Utah for the 2020 PLL Championship Series, where he featured in all of his team's six games. Nick is currently the color commentator for the NLL San Diego Seals and lives in Boise, Idaho.

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Lauren Schmidt · Lead Advisor to Girls Lacrosse Program

Lauren Schmidt is from Bay Shore, NY where she played for the Yellow Jacket Club Team. She then played at D1 Stanford University, where she was a 4 year starter, 2 year captain, All American, 2 time Conference Player of the Year, and lead the team to four Conference Championships and several NCAA appearances.

​She also played on the US National Team, and for Team STX, the precursor to the Professional Women's League.

Lauren coached at D1 Fresno State and UC Berkeley, where she oversaw the Defense, Midfield and Draw Circle. She also coached 2x Conference Player of the Year Megan Tackas at Cal.

Lauren left Cal to work with the then-fledgling Bearlax/Tenacity Club Team. She oversaw the growth of Tenacity from a few teams in the Bay Area to 16 teams in California, and coached countless players to have the opportunity to play collegiate lacrosse at every level.

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Nicole Kearney · Board of Directors · Head Coach Girls 7th/8th

Nicole is from Newtown Square, Pennsylvania . She rode horses and enjoyed many sports growing up, with lacrosse being a favorite. Nicole played three varsity sports and captained both the lacrosse and squash teams at The Shipley School in Bryn Mawr. She was also awarded the Merry Tropp Sportsmanship award. Nicole played two years on the Herons lacrosse team at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Upstate New York before studying, teaching, and living abroad. She has coached lacrosse, tennis, soccer, and other sports in the states and South America. She moved to the Wood River Valley for "one year" many years ago, lives in Hailey with her family, and currently teaches Elementary School Spanish at Sun Valley Community School.

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Scott Esselman · Girls 7th/8th

Scott Esselman is an assistant coach for the Sun Valley Lacrosse 14U girls’ team. Scott grew up outside of Boston, MA where he graduated from St. Sebastian’s Country Day School. At St. Sebastian’s he captained the Varsity Soccer team and played Ice Hockey. He then attended the University of Vermont, where he met his now lifelong friends from Ketchum, ID. He spent his freshman summer living in Ketchum, working for John Kearney Painting.

After many years of visiting the valley since, Scott and his family finally moved here permanently in late 2020. Since then, Scott has engrained himself in the community, currently serving as the head coach of the Sun Valley Youth Hockey 14U/12U girls’ team, and volunteering for various causes.

Scott lives in Ketchum with his wife Marne, and daughter Josie, who is a member of the 14U girls’ team.

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Kevin Hicks · Girls 7th/8th

Kevin Hicks has coached boys' and girls' high school lacrosse at The Peddie School, Avon Old Farms, Middlesex School, Wellesley High School, The Hotchkiss School, and Stevenson School. He has coached women's college lacrosse at Trinity College and Brown University, and worked with goalies at Princeton University and Yale University. Since 1992, he has been affiliated with Peak Goalie School, the nation's premier goalie school for boys and girls, 11-18.

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Ethan Beck · Board of Directors · Head Coach Boys 7th/8th

Ethan grew up playing lacrosse in Vermont. He attended Middlebury College where he started coaching youth lacrosse by his junior year. He has continued to coach lacrosse as well as alpine skiing, working with ages ranging from 10 to adulthood. Coaching and mentoring youth through athletics is one of his many passions.

Ethan is a husband and father of three kids who are all a part of Sun Valley Lacrosse. Ethan is the owner and founder of Ethan Beck Homes Inc., a residential construction company. He also sits of the Sun Valley Lacrosse board of directors. When Ethan is not driving his kids to lacrosse tournaments or ski races, he can be found exploring Idaho’s trails and rivers.

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Neil Munro · Boys 7th/8th

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Chris Heinz · Boys 7th/8th

Chris grew up playing lacrosse in the Washington, DC and played high school lacrosse for St. Paul’s School in Concord, NH. His lacrosse career culminated with him playing at Yale University for Coach Mike Waldvogel. Chris was a defensive midfielder at Yale and renowned for his incredible sense of humor, if not his offensive skills.

Chris and his family moved to the Wood River Valley full time in 2018. Both his children participate in Sun Valley Lacrosse. Outside of coaching, Chris works for a Washington, DC-based venture capital firm. His favorite activities are skiing, hiking, shooting, weightlifting and cooking for his wonderful wife and kids.

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Elizabeth Dietz · Co-Head Coach Girls 5th/6th

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Jon Meyer · Co-Head Coach Girls 5th/6th

Jon Meyer grew up in Denver where he started playing lacrosse. He was a high school all-American goalie at the state champion East-Manual program and played for Williams College in Massachusetts. After two decades in the bay area he moved to the Wood River Valley in 2021 and lives in Ketchum with his wife Julie, two daughters, Riley and Dylan, and son, Cole.

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John McDonnell · Girls 5th/6th

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Bridget Higgins · Girls Lacrosse Coach

Bridget Higgins is the Director of Marketing and Public Relations of Sun Valley Company. Bridget is a brand builder, who uses her global brand and marketing strategy skills to drive awareness & performance of Sun Valley Resort. Previously, she led the Aloft Hotels brand at Marriott International, driving brand vision, strategy, growth, and performance through the largest merger in hospitality.

Bridget received a BA and an MBA from the University of Notre Dame. While pursuing her undergraduate degree, Higgins was a member of Notre Dame's Varsity Women's Lacrosse team and was a 3-time Monogram winner. Bridget lives in Ketchum, ID.

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John Spengler · Head Coach Boys 5th/6th

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Evan Wyman · Board of Directors 

Coach Evan is from Seattle, WA and attended The Lakeside School where he played 3 varsity sports, captained the baseball team and was the Metro League first team first baseman his junior and senior years. A youth sports coach for 22+ years, Evan has coached lacrosse, basketball, baseball, and a little bit of soccer. Evan believes in fun first while working on strong fundamentals, respect for the game, and respect for their team mates and coaches. Coach Evan has two sons who love lacrosse and has logged many miles hauling them to lacrosse tournaments around the west. Evan, Zack and Dillon reside in Elkhorn.

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Katie Quaglia · Head Coach Girls 3rd/4th

Katie is originally from California and recently picked up lacrosse, with some encouragement from her ice hockey teammate, Tess. Katie graduated from Boston College where she played field hockey for the Eagles. She has coached skiing with Higher Ground, Girls on the Run, and Healthy Families program with St. Luke’s and the YMCA.

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Alessia Carega · Girls 3rd/4th

Alessia started playing lacrosse in middle school in Washington D.C. back when wooden sticks were the rage. As the game continued to evolve, so did her love for the sport. Alessia played soccer and lacrosse in high school at St. Paul's school in Concord N.H., serving as a lacrosse captain in her senior year. Not ready to leave lacrosse nor the fun of team sports behind, Alessia played lacrosse for two years for Georgetown University before turning her interests to studying abroad. Alessia's career in education after college from the mid-atlantic to the northeast region led her to teach, or work in administration and coach at several schools: the Peddie School (NJ), Noble and Greenough (MA), Winsor (MA), and St. Paul's School (NH). She has coached soccer and lacrosse on and off for 23 years, for high school teams (JV and Varsity) and more recently, since moving to Hailey in 2019, in elementary school programs through BCRD and Sun Valley Lacrosse. She is excited to see lacrosse continue to grow in the WRV and Idaho and is thrilled to be working with the 3/4 girls' team.

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Sasha Heinz · Girls 3rd/4th

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Lucy Chubb · Girls 3rd/4th

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Edith Iler · Girls 3rd/4th

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Andrew Jones · Board of Directors · Head Coach Boys 3rd/4th

Andy Jones is from Summit, New Jersey and played Varsity lacrosse for Chuck Reubling at the perennial national powerhouse Delbarton. As team Co-Captain, Andy was voted team MVP, 1st Team All-Morris County, 2nd Team All-State, was a 2x State Championship runner-up and held the school record for goals in a game with 7 as a middie. In the winter, Andy played several seasons of box lacrosse and was selected to the New Jersey Tri-State All-Star team. In addition to lacrosse, Andy was Co-Captain of the Delbarton football team, won a State Championship, received team MVP honors, was voted 1st Team All-Morris County, 1st Team All-State as a wide receiver, 3rd Team All-State as a defensive back and had a record-breaking 99-yard interception return for a touchdown in the State Championship semi-finals to solidify a win against one of the country’s most successful high school programs. Andy received runner-up honors for New Jersey’s “Athlete of the Year” according to the Daily Record newspaper. Andy went on to play Division-3 lacrosse and football at Williams College where he was a 4-year starter in both sports and graduated with a degree in Economics. Prior to relocating to Sun Valley with his wife, Megan, and their four children (Lucy, Piper, Marlowe and Sawyer), Andy was involved with La Jolla Lacrosse and assisted setting up a clinic with the most recent National Lacrosse League team, the San Diego Seals, to spread the love of the game. Andy works within Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management and manages money for a select number of families.

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Jeff Conover · Boys 3rd/4th

Coach Jeff grew up in the wood river valley and was a member of the first High School lacrosse team in the valley. As a multi sport athlete he was a captain for lacrosse, hockey, and football his senior year of HS. After graduating Jeff went on to play lacrosse in college at Limestone Univerity and competed in two NCAA DII Final Four tournaments. After his lacrosse days Jeff has moved back home and owns a personal training facility in Hailey. He has a passion for coaching and is very involved in youth hockey in the valley as well. He has two boys Eldon and Beau in the Sun Valley Lacrosse program. When he's not coaching Jeff loves spending time in the mountains and is an avid archery hunter.

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Raines Shamburger · Head Coach Boys High School

Raines played his scholastic lacrosse at Westminster School winning a state championship in 2015 and finishing his high school career at Avon Old Farms. Rated as the No. 3 freshman defenseman by Inside Lacrosse heading into 2018, Raines was voted to the Under Armour All-America team as a senior at Avon. A US Lacrosse All-American, Raines played longstick middie at Duke University and was a 4-time member of the ACC Academic Honor Roll.

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Tim Price - Boys High School

Coach Price grew up playing lacrosse in West Chester, PA. He began his career out west playing attack at Arapahoe High School in Colorado, earning all-state honors and leading his team to its first quarterfinal appearances as a junior and senior. Following HS, Tim joined the University of Denver lacrosse team from 1994-1998. At DU, Tim finished his career a leader in single-season and career assists as an attackman for the Pioneers.

Tim took his first head coaching position at Cheyenne Mountain High School in Colorado Springs, CO. In his first year with the Indians he was honored as the Southern Conference Coach-of-the-Year, spending five years building a program that is now a staple in the Colorado lacrosse community. Moving back to Denver in 2008 , Tim joined as a coach of the Columbine High School Rebels as an assistant coach and later moved to Aspen, CO taking on position of first assistant coach for their lacrosse team.

In addition to coaching at youth and high school levels in the Wood River Valley, Tim has also worked at summer camps as a coach and coordinator for a variety of different schools and programs.

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Aaron Prazenka 

Coach Praz comes from the suburbs of Chicago where he played attack and defense through high school. He then played lacrosse at the University of Northern Colorado. After college, Praz went on to coach youth lacrosse for 6 years with Lacrosse America, coaching youth players ages 6 to 14, as well as coaching the Junior Varsity program at his hometown high school, Highland Park High School.

After 6 years of coaching, Praz moved to Sun Valley, Idaho, where he was instrumental in growing the youth lacrosse program from just 21 players to over 100. He has helped extensively with peer mentoring, having high school players facilitate youth practices, and he has continued to foster relationships with youth lacrosse players and parents over the last 13 years, from Illinois to Idaho. Praz has also coached youth hockey for the Sun Valley Suns Youth Hockey program for 5 years.

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Peter Geagan · Board of Directors · Head Coach Girls Highh School · USA Lacrosse Girls Gold Certification

Pete Geagan grew up in Brasher Falls, NY in a lacrosse family. He credits his coach of a dad (who started high school boys lacrosse in northern NY in the 70s) with inspiring him at a young age to love the game and its life lessons as he tagged along as the team manager, immersed in the game every spring once the snow left the fields. He played football, hockey and lacrosse at the Trinity-Pawling School, captaining the lacrosse team as an attackman in 1988. In college, he played hockey and lacrosse at Bowdoin; earning honorable mention All-American honors at midfield his senior year for lacrosse and captained that team as well. After graduation, Pete spent 3 years working at the Westminster School in CT as an Admissions officer, history teacher, dorm parent, as well as a coach for football, hockey, and lacrosse. Pete moved on to a career in medical device sales and business development, as well as sales training. Having a sense of purpose, joy, camaraderie, accountability to others, and following through for yourself and your teammates is a large part of Coach Pete’s ethos. You can find Pete teaching skiing on Baldy this year as well. The circle of life seems to have a sense of purpose, as his daughter Georgia inspired him (along with coaches Wendy Speth, Kerry Funkhouser, Miles Pietch, Geoff Herbert) to help start the girls high school lacrosse team here in 2021. Coach Pete is incredibly proud of the amazing progress the girls high school team has made over the past 2 years and believes they are primed for an incredible 2024 season! He lives in Hailey under Red Devil Mountain with his wife Kate, daughter Georgia (playing lacrosse @ Chapman Univ), and son Chase (also loves/plays HS lacrosse here).

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Margot Ramsay · Head Coach K - 2nd

Margot Ramsay is from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Margot attended Germantown Friends School, and played varsity lacrosse and soccer. She fell in love with lacrosse and attended lacrosse camps in the Northeast, and played as much as she could on the field and in her backyard.

Between high school and college, Margot lived in Costa Rica for a semester and did a National Outdoor Leadership School semester abroad in Australia. She went on to graduate from the University of Virginia, where she rowed on the novice Crew team for a year, and worked high up in the trees at a Ropes Course throughout school. During the summers in college, Margot worked for Moondance Adventures as a mountain guide, and lead kids on climbing, backpacking and kayaking trips in the Blue Ridge Mountains, the Pacific Northwest, in Colorado and Costa Rica.

Margot moved to Ketchum after college, and went back to school for nursing. She is an RN, and periodically writes for Sun Valley Magazine, but is currently at home (working!) with her three children.

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Maura Doyle · K - 2nd coach

Maura grew up in Massachusetts where she began playing Lacrosse and Field Hockey at age 10 through high school. Maura attended Kimball Union Academy where she was a member of the Varsity Field Hockey and Lacrosse programs for all 4 years and was named a New England Prep School All-Star her Junior and Senior years. Maura went on to play Division II Field Hockey at Merrimack College and was on the 2015 National Championship Runner Up and 2013 Final Four teams. However, Maura never lost her love for the sport of Lacrosse. Prior to moving to Sun Valley in 2021, Maura was Assistant Coaching the Girls Varsity Lacrosse program at her Alma Mater, KUA, and for the ECHO Lacrosse Club in NH. She is thrilled to finally be in the Wood River Valley, exploring the outdoors, working at Sun Valley Community School, and is excited to continue helping the sport of Lacrosse grow.

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Tess O'Sullivan - Girls K - 2nd

Tess O'Sullivan hails from Greenwich, Connecticut where she was introduced to and fell in love with many sports including lacrosse, ice hockey, field hockey, and figure skating. She played varsity lacrosse for Greenwich High School. Tess went to Yale where she played varsity field hockey and lacrosse. Her senior year, the Yale women's team won the ECAC Division 1 Championships. Tess has coached youth ice hockey, girl's soccer, and women's nordic skiing. She is eager to introduce girls to the joy of lacrosse here in the valley. Tess works for the Idaho Chapter of The Nature Conservancy.