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Carol Cantele headshot

Carol Cantele

  • Title
    Assistant Director of Athletics/SWA/Head Women's Lacrosse Coach
  • Email
    ccantele@gettysburg.edu
  • Phone
    717-337-6404
  • Twitter
    @GburgWLAX
  • Facebook
    @GettysburgCollegeWomensLacrosse
  • Instagram
    @gburgWLAX
  • Alma Mater
    Gettysburg '83
13939Carol Cantele ’83 is entering her 30th season as the head coach of the Gettysburg women’s lacrosse program in 2021-22. Cantele is the program’s all-time leader in wins, amassing a record of 427-111 (.794 winning percentage) and claiming 12 Centennial Conference titles and three national titles.
 
Over the last 22 seasons, Cantele has led the Bullets to unprecedented heights. The team has competed in the NCAA Division III Tournament 19 times and has advanced to the national semifinals seven times in the last 16 years. The Bullets battled through adversity to post a 9-2 record in the last two seasons that were shortened due to the pandemic. The team featured a total of seven All-America selections and Barr became the program’s third Academic All-America honoree.
 
Gettysburg continued its status as one of the premier teams in Division III by going 19-2 overall and winning the Centennial Conference title in 2019. The team spent eight weeks atop the national poll and advanced to the NCAA regional finals for the fourth consecutive season. The Bullets set new program records for points (542) and assists (198) in a season, while Liza Barr ’20 set a new mark and led all of Division III with 75 assists. Barr, Courtney Patterson ’20, and Kerry McKeever ’21 all gained All-America status with Patterson also being named the IWLCA Division III Midfielder of the Year.
 
Cantele led Gettysburg to back-to-back national titles in 2017 and 2018. After going 21-3 and topping top-ranked TCNJ 6-5 in the 2017 title game, the Bullets made it back to the big stage and beat No. 4 Middlebury College 11-9 in 2018. Gettysburg became just the fourth Division III program to win back-to-back titles.
 
The Bullets tied the program record for wins with a mark of 21-2 in 2018 with 10 of those wins coming against teams ranked in the final top 25. Gettysburg also claimed the Centennial Conference crown with a 15-7 win over No. 7 Franklin & Marshall College in the league playoffs. The team set a new program standard by earning the top spot in the national poll for seven consecutive weeks. Cantele was named the IWLCA Division III Coach of the Year for the fourth time in her career.
 
Cantele also joined elite company in the pantheon of lacrosse coaches with her 400th career win as the Bullets defeated Salisbury University 10-2 in the regional championship in 2017. Cantele is one of just four coaches in NCAA history to reach the milestone and she has compiled a record of 451-134 (.771) in 33 seasons. She ranks third all-time in total victories among all NCAA coaches.
 
In 2011, Cantele led Gettysburg to the first NCAA team title in school history. The Bullets knocked off Bowdoin College 16-5 in the national championship game and finished with a season record of 19-4. Cantele was named NCAA Division III Coach of the Year.
 
Cantele has coached Gettysburg each year the school has competed in the Centennial Conference. Over the last 27 years, the Bullets have turned in an impressive record of 213-37 (.852) in conference play. The team won its league record 12th title in 2019.
 
Gettysburg has received 60 All-America citations from the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) in Cantele’s 29 years at the helm. Additionally, eight Bullets have been named IWLCA Division III Player of the Year at their respective positions. In 2018, Steph Colson ’18 was lauded as the inaugural NCAA Division III Player of the Year. Cantele has also coached 112 all-region selections, 156 all-conference honorees, three Academic All-America selections, and two Elite 89 Award winners.

Cantele’s success has been recognized often by her peers. She has been named NCAA Division III Coach of the Year four times (2006, 2011, 2017, 2018), Metro Region Coach of the Year 10 times (2000, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2018), and Centennial Conference Coach of the Year twice (2013, 2015). Cantele was tabbed Division III Coach of the Year by Inside Lacrosse for the third time in 2018.
 
Gettysburg has won at least 14 games in each of the last 20 full seasons, including a school-record 21 in 2006, 2017, and 2018. The program has maintained a national ranking in every poll since the 2000 season. In 2006, the Bullets ascended to the No. 1 spot for the first time in program history and the team has seized the top position in 2007, 2012, 2015, 2017, 2018, and 2019.
 
Cantele earned her 300th career victory with a 17-3 win over McDaniel College on April 4, 2012. She notched win No. 200 when the Bullets defeated Gwynedd-Mercy College 21-2 on March 3. On April 10, 2002, Cantele became the program’s all-time coaching victories leader and the first Gettysburg women’s lacrosse coach to win 100 games when the Bullets downed Dickinson College 16-9. She led her 1995, 1997, and 2001 squads to the Eastern College Athletic Conference Division III Mid-Atlantic playoffs, capturing the championship in 1995.
 
Cantele has been recognized as one of the top contributors and proponents to the sport of women’s lacrosse and was named to the IWLCA Hall of Fame in 2021. In the fall of 2016, she was given the Diane Geppi-Aikens Memorial Award, one of the highest honors given by the IWLCA. The award recognizes lifetime achievement to the women’s college game.
 
In 2009, she was awarded the Judith M. Sweet Commitment Award by the National Association of Collegiate Women Athletics Administrators (NACWAA), given to those individuals who have provided outstanding leadership and commitment to colleagues and student-athletes in intercollegiate athletics. Also in 2009, Cantele was named head coach of the U.S. Developmental Team and she served an assistant coach with Team USA during its run to the gold medal at the 2013 World Cup.

Cantele also compiled a school-record 121 coaching victories and five conference championships in 10 years with the Gettysburg field hockey program before resigning in 2002 to focus on women’s lacrosse and her new role as senior woman’s administrator. Cantele is also the Assistant Director of Athletics and oversees the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).
 
Prior to returning to her alma mater, Cantele turned around the lacrosse program at Plymouth State University, taking a 3-9 team in her first season there to a 10-2 team in her last in 1992. In her four seasons at the helm, she was 24-23. She also coached the Panthers’ field hockey team for two seasons, leading the squad to a 20-11-2 record and an appearance in the ECAC semifinals.
 
Cantele served as a graduate assistant with the field hockey team at Miami (Ohio) University from 1986-88 where she attained an M.A. in physical education with an emphasis in sport psychology/coaching behavior. She also served as the head coach of the club lacrosse team at Miami.
 
Cantele is one of a select few to lay claim to national titles as both a coach and as a player. A 1983 graduate of Gettysburg, the former Carol Daly helped the Bullets win the school’s first national title with the field hockey team in 1980. That team won the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) Division III Tournament – the precursor to the NCAA Championships. A dual-sport athlete, Cantele also competed on the Bullets’ lacrosse team and led that program to its first national playoff appearance in 1981.
 
Cantele resides in Gettysburg with her husband, Mike, a 1988 Gettysburg grad and the head athletic trainer for the Bullets.


Career Highlights
  • 30th season at Gettysburg
  • Program's all-time wins leader at 427-111 (.794 winning percentage)
  • Ranks third in NCAA history in wins with career mark of 451-132 (.770) over 33 seasons
  • Three-time NCAA Division III Champion (2011, 2017, 2018)
  • Led Bullets to 12 Centennial Conference titles
  • 19 NCAA appearances since 2000 (18 straight)
  • Four-time IWLCA Division III Coach of the Year (2006, 2011, 2017, 2018)
  • 10-time IWLCA Metro Region Coach of the Year (2000, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2018)
  • Two-time CC Coach of the Year (2013, 2015)
  • Coached 64 All-Americans and eight IWLCA Players of the Year
  • Team has been ranked No. 1 in the nation 20 times since 2006
  • 2021 IWLCA Hall of Fame Inductee
  • Recipient of the Diane Geppi-Aikens Memorial Award (2016)
  • Recipient of the Judith M. Sweet Commitment Award (2009)
  • Former head field hockey coach at Gettysburg (1993-02)
  • Led Bullets field hockey to 121 wins and five conference titles
  • Former head lacrosse coach at Plymouth State University (1989-92)
  • Eight-time letterwinner in lacrosse and field hockey at Gettysburg (1979-83)
  • Helped Bullets field hockey claim the 1980 AIAW Division III Championship
     
Overall Conference
School Year Wins Losses Pct. Wins Losses Pct. Finish Playoffs Postseason
Plymouth State 1989 3 9 0.250
Plymouth State 1990 2 9 0.182
Plymouth State 1991 9 3 0.750
Plymouth State 1992 10 2 0.833
Plymouth Total 4 24 23 0.510
Gettysburg 1993 5 6 0.455 3 2 0.600
Gettysburg 1994 7 8 0.467 4 6 0.400 7th
Gettysburg 1995 13 5 0.722 7 3 0.700 4th ECAC Mid-Atlantic Champions
Gettysburg 1996 7 7 0.500 5 5 0.500 7th
Gettysburg 1997 12 5 0.706 9 1 0.900 2nd ECAC Tournament
Gettysburg 1998 8 7 0.533 7 3 0.700 4th
Gettysburg 1999 8 7 0.533 6 3 0.667 4th
Gettysburg 2000 17 3 0.850 9 0 1.000 1st CC Champs, NCAA Tournament
Gettysburg 2001 14 6 0.700 8 1 0.889 2nd 2nd CC Runner-Up, ECAC Tournament
Gettysburg 2002 15 4 0.789 8 1 0.889 2nd 1st CC Champs, NCAA Tournament
Gettysburg 2003 19 2 0.905 9 0 1.000 1st 1st CC Champs, NCAA Tournament
Gettysburg 2004 18 3 0.857 9 0 1.000 1st 1st CC Champs, NCAA Tournament
Gettysburg 2005 16 4 0.800 8 1 0.889 1st 1st CC Champs, NCAA Tournament
Gettysburg 2006 21 1 0.955 9 0 1.000 1st 1st CC Champs, NCAA Runner-Up
Gettysburg 2007 17 4 0.810 8 1 0.889 2nd 2nd CC Runner-Up, NCAA Semifinalist
Gettysburg 2008 17 4 0.810 8 1 0.889 2nd 2nd CC Runner-Up, NCAA Tournament
Gettysburg 2009 16 4 0.800 8 1 0.889 2nd 2nd CC Runner-Up, NCAA Semifinalist
Gettysburg 2010 18 4 0.818 9 0 1.000 1st 2nd CC Runner-Up, NCAA Semifinalist
Gettysburg 2011 19 4 0.826 8 1 0.889 2nd 2nd CC Runner-Up, NCAA Champions
Gettysburg 2012 19 2 0.905 9 0 1.000 1st 1st CC Champions, NCAA Tournament
Gettysburg 2013 19 2 0.905 9 0 1.000 1st 1st CC Champions, NCAA Second Round
Gettysburg 2014 18 3 0.857 8 1 0.889 1st 1st CC Champions, NCAA Quarterfinals
Gettysburg 2015 16 4 0.800 8 1 0.889 1st 2nd CC Runner-Up, NCAA Third Round
Gettysburg 2016 18 3 0.857 8 1 0.889 1st 1st CC Champions, NCAA Quarterfinals
Gettysburg 2017 21 3 0.875 8 1 0.889 1st 2nd CC Runner-Up, NCAA Champions
Gettysburg 2018 21 2 0.913 8 1 0.889 1st 1st CC Champions, NCAA Champions
Gettysburg 2019 19 2 0.905 8 1 0.889 2nd 1st CC Champions, NCAA Quarterfinals
Gettysburg 2020 4 1 0.800 0 0 0.000 N/A N/A
Gettysburg 2021 5 1 0.833 5 1 0.833 2nd N/A
Gburg Total 29 427 111 0.794 213 37 0.852
Career Total 33 451 134 0.771 213 37 0.852