Joe Conner enters his second season and became the third head coach in Chatham Men’s Lacrosse history taking over at the helm in August 2025. With 20 years of NCAA college coaching experience at the NCAA Division 1 and 3 levels, Conner brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to Chatham Lacrosse to continue the growth and success of the program.
In Conner’s first season at the helm for Chatham Men’s Lacrosse, the program set new records in wins and winning percentage with their 14 wins and .778 winning percentage. The Cougars also set new single season records in five different areas. The team set a record in goals with 290, headlined by Thomas Whitaker's 81. The Cougars also set a new assist record with 181. Jacob Lubawy and Brady Rigdon each had 28 which led the team. That led to the Cougars having a new single season record in total points with 471. Whitaker's 86 points led all Cougars.
The Cougars set two single game records as a team. The Cougars had 53 points in their win over Thiel, led by Erik Sahlgren's eight point performance. The Cougars just a week later set a new single game ground ball record with 80. Cody Randal had 16 to pace the Cougars.
The Cougars also set new record longs in consecutive wins and consecutive home wins. The Cougars had an eight game winning streak from April 1st - April 29th. The Cougars had a four game home winning streak entering this season and the Cougars extended it to a record six games. The streak stretched from March 29, 2025, to March 21, 2026.
The Cougars did not just set team records, there were multiple individual records set as well. There were four different single game records broken this season. The single game goals record was seven entering this season, that record was set twice this season. Whitaker scored eight goals in the Cougars win at Virginia Wesleyan and nine goals in the Cougars win against Hiram. Rigdon recorded a new single game record seven assists in the Cougars win against Bethany. Randal set two different single game records this season. In the Cougars win against Thiel, Randal recorded 29 face off wins and 20 ground balls. He re-set the single game face off wins record with 31 in the Cougars win against Bethany.
There were six different single season records that were toppled by the Cougars in the 2026 season. Whitaker recorded 81 goals and five assists. His 81 goals and 86 total points both set new single season records. Randal not only set the single game records in face off wins and ground balls, he also set new single season records with 141 ground balls and 264 face off wins. James Cipollone set a new single season record in saves with 170 in his first season as a Cougar. Jesse Corser-James recorded 42 caused turnovers breaking the single season record he set last season.
There were also five different player career records that were set in the 2026 as well. Whitaker ended the season with 129 career goals. Lubawy entered his senior season already holding the career assist record. He ended the season with 104 career assists and 192 points both career records. Randal ended his senior season with 305 ground balls and 572 face off wins, both new career records.
In 2026, the Cougars had 10 players make all conference in the PAC, including 4 first team selections. Jacob Lubawy earned a spot in the USILA senior All-Star game, which marks the first time a Chatham Men’s Lacrosse player has participated in this prestigious all-star game. Jacob Lubawy and Thomas Whitaker earned USILA Scholar All American honors in 2026, being the 3rd and 4th in program history as well as the first time having multiple players achieve this honor in program history.
Conner was the Associate Head Coach at Dartmouth College from 2018-2023 where he helped the Big Green increase their win total each season. In 2023 Conner coached the program to its first Ivy League win since 2015 and reached its best overall record since 2008. Dartmouth posted a 13-5 record in non-league play from 2020-23 receiving top 20 votes every week in March 2023. In 2023 Dartmouth scored its most goals in a season since 2008 while achieving multiple program records in goal scoring. Conner recruited and coached multiple all conference players during his time at Dartmouth, including the Ivy League rookie of the year in 2023, the Big Green’s first major award winner since 2017.
Before Dartmouth, Conner was the Associate Head Coach at Bucknell University from 2009-2018 where he helped the Bison win their first ever conference title in 2011 and helped the program achieve it’s highest national ranking in program history at #6 in 2018. Conner posted a career record of 85-51 while at Bucknell, coached 12 All Americans, 7 eventual professional players, and received the Patriot League Coaching Staff of the Year Award in 2018.
During his playing career, Conner played for three seasons at Binghamton University before transferring and playing one season at Mount Saint Mary's University, where he started his coaching career after graduation. Conner completed his undergraduate degree from Mount Saint Mary’s in 2007 and then went on to earn his MBA from Mount Saint Mary’s in 2009.
Conner and his wife, Erin, have three children – sons Ethan and Jace, and daughter Gia.
The Conner File
| Year |
Record |
PAC Record |
Winning % |
| 2026 |
14-4 |
8-1 |
.778 |
| Total |
14-4 |
8-1 |
.778 |
