Albany, NY —Lauren Marois (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) head coach of Russell Sage College's Women's Lacrosse Team has announced her resignation, effective May 31. Marois was named Sage's first full-time women's lacrosse coach in the summer of 2017. She served as the program's head coach for six seasons.
Russell Sage College will conduct a national search for her replacement this summer.
RSC Director of Athletics, Sandy Augstein-Collins commented, "Sage Athletics thanks Lauren for her work with our women's lacrosse program." She added, "She has been a valuable team member and we wish her all the best in her next endeavor."
Twice during her time with the program she led the team to post-season play. The most recent selection in 2021 as the Gators earned the program's first Empire 8 Tournament appearance.
Prior to being named full-time in 2017, Marois served two years as the Gators' part-time head coach. Under her direction, the 2017 team enjoyed the most successful season in the program's history that wrapped with the team garnering the first post-season appearance as well.
After almost knocking off No. 4 seeded Mt. St. Mary College in the 2017 Skyline Conference Tournament in May, Sage's season came to an end with record of 7-9. Along the way, the team reached new high-water marks for success that included seven wins, five wins in a row and a spot in post-season play, all Sage women's lacrosse firsts.
In her first year with the Gators as head coach, she led the 2016 squad to a record-setting performance. Marois produced three Skyline Conference All-Stars, while the Gators went 5-10 overall and 1-6 in the league. The five wins broke the program's mark for most wins in a season along the way, while also shattering the mark for most goals in a season (158) and most points (189) and tying the mark for most assists in a season with 31.
As a new member of the Empire 8 in 2018, Sage posted a record of 5-9 as three players were honored by the league. Senior attacker Torri Sperl and graduate performer Savannah Mason was named to the 2018 Empire 8 Honorable Mention Team, while senior Nikki Pedone was named to the Sportswoman Team. Senior Ellen Abbott also earned a selection by the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) as a member of the 2018 IWLCA Zag Sports Division III Academic Honor Roll.
In 2019, Sage's women's lacrosse program had a pair of Gators recognized by the league. Sage's rookie defender Alexandra Lettre and sophomore attacker Alexandra Franco were both honored. Lettre was named to the Empire 8 Second Team on defense. Franco was named to the Sportswoman Team, while three players were also honored by the IWLCA as members of the 2019 IWLCA Zag Sports Academic Honor Squads for the 2018-19 academic year. Honored in 2019 were Anne Risler, Brittany Gage, and Tashariff Carr for their accomplishments in the classroom.
This year's team had three players honored with the release of the 2021 Empire 8 Women's Lacrosse All-Conference Teams. The Gators earned a spot in the Empire 8 Tournament this spring, a program first and wrapped their campaign with a record of 3-6.
Prior to taking over Sage's program, Marois spent the previous two seasons with the program as an assistant coach and has helped the Gators achieve considerable success as they continued to break and set new standards for success for the program that started as a varsity team in 2009.
