EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa. — The ESU Athletics Department announced Thursday, Sept. 3, that it has promoted Rachel Ward to Associate Head Coach for the women's lacrosse team.
 
Ward completed her eighth season with the Warriors in 2026 and has helped the program become a perennial contender in the Atlantic Region, winning four of ESU's five titles with her on the staff. Since joining East Stroudsburg in the summer of 2019 as the first full-time assistant coach in ESU women's lacrosse history, the Warriors have gone 99-28 (.779), including an 8-2 record during ten games as the interim head coach in 2023.
 
"I am incredibly honored and grateful for the opportunity to be promoted as associate head coach," Ward said. "Over the past eight seasons, this program has become very special to me. I am so proud of everything we have built together. I'm thankful to [Head Coach Xeni Barakos-Yoder] for her trust, support, and belief in me throughout the years. We make a really good team as coaches, and it's been a lot of fun being successful with her. I'm excited to take on this new role and continue helping our players and program reach our goals."
 
"This one is especially special to me," Barakos-Yoder said. "Over the past eight seasons, Rachel has been so much more than an assistant coach — she has been my sounding board, my teammate, and someone I know I can count on every single day. She cares deeply about our players and about what we are building here, and that shows up in everything she does.
 
Rachel has poured countless hours into developing our student-athletes, building our offense, recruiting, and helping create the culture that makes this program special. She has earned the trust and respect of our players, our staff, and our entire program. As associate head coach, she will continue to help lead our offense, recruiting efforts, and player development, with an expanded role in shaping the direction of the program. I can't wait to see what we accomplish together this season and beyond."
 
Primarily working with the ESU offense and its goalkeepers, Ward has overseen some of the best performances in Division II during her tenure. In the crease, she's helped three goalies earn five total All-America honors, including the 2024 Division II Goalkeeper of the Year, Abby Simonetti. She's also worked with the top two leading scorers in program history, Emily Mitarotonda and Sadie Kauffman. Mitarotonda finished with 314 goals and 393 points, the most by a player in the history of the PSAC, while Kauffman has set the single-season records for goals and points in her first two seasons, producing 110 and 142, respectively, in 2026. ESU's three-highest-scoring seasons all happened with Ward on the sideline, as the Warriors set a new program record last year with 403 goals during their second 20-win season.
 
With Ward as the assistant coach, the Warriors have won one PSAC championship and have gone 11-6 in the NCAA Division II Tournament, with at least one win each season. Barakos-Yoder and Ward were recently named the IWLCA Atlantic Region Coaching Staff of the Year last June, and Ward was also recognized as the IWLCA Division II Outstanding Assistant Coach in 2022.