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Cindy Timchal is the head women’s lacrosse coach at The United States Naval Academy. She has coached for some of the top programs in women’s lacrosse, including Northwestern University, University of Maryland, and her current coaching job at the United States Naval Academy. Cindy Timchal is well-known for her years at Maryland where she coached the Terps to an outstanding 7 straight Women’s Lacrosse NCAA Championships.

Background
Cindy Timchal grew up in Havertown, Pennsylvania, and despite not playing lacrosse in high school, Timchal went on to play on the lacrosse team at West Chester University. While at West Chester, Timchal was also a member of the Tennis and Track and Field teams. After graduating college, Timchal got her first coaching job at Unionville High School, where she was a member of the coaching staff for not only lacrosse, but also the field hockey and basketball teams. In 1979, after coaching for two years at Unionville, Cindy Timchal began her college coaching career at The University of Pennsylvania, where she was an assistant for the lacrosse and field hockey teams.

Coaching at Northwestern
Cindy Timchal’s head coaching career started in 1982 when she took on the program at Northwestern University. She would stay with the wildcats for nine years, coaching them to five NCAA appearances in 1983, ‘84, ’86, ’87, ’88. Cindy’s record at Northwestern tallied 76-40, where she posted a winning season for eight out of her nine seasons.

Coaching at Maryland
In 1991, Timchal left Northwestern to pursue her Coaching Career at the University of Maryland. Although Maryland had a history of being a powerhouse in lacrosse, the Terps had only won 2 national titles, with the most recent title in 1986. In just her first season as head coach, Timchal coached her team to an NCAA final as well as a 14-3 record. Maryland, under Timchal, proceeded to make it to the finals the following two years, yet both resulted in defeats to Princeton University. Following their loss to Princeton in the 1995 finals, Maryland went on a 50 game winning streak. This included a 13-5 national championship win over Princeton. Starting with the 1995 Championship title, Timchal and her Terps went on to win six more in a row. The seven straight championship streak was completed with the 2001 title game, in which Maryland posted a perfect 23-0 season and defeated Georgetown in double overtime. Overall, Timchal’s record at Maryland was 260-46 and her winning percentage was 85%.

Coaching at Navy
On August 5, 2006, Cindy Timchal was named the head coach for the women’s lacrosse team at the United States Naval Academy. Timchal was given the opportunity by athletic director, Chet Gladchuk, to become the first women’s lacrosse coach as Navy decided to elevate its club program to the division I level. It was no surprise that Gladchuck named Timchal as head coach for the program, as he described her as “the finest coach in the history of the game”. Timchal wasted no time in creating a power out of her Navy squad. As a member of the Patriot League, the midshipmen challenged the top teams in the league and went on to achieve a record of 13-4 in just their first year a program in 2008. Timchal’s 2009 season experienced similar success, but it was her 2010 season that broke the barriers. In 2010, the midshipmen went 17-4 while capturing their first Patriot League title and their first NCAA tournament appearance. It took only three years for the Patriots’ appearance, which was the fastest a new team had qualified for the NCAA playoffs in 13 years. Their success in the 2010 season left Navy ranked 19th nationally. For the 2011 season, Timchal challenged her squad as they faced fierce competition in lacrosse powerhouses like Maryland and Northwestern during their season. Timchal coached her team to yet another Patriot League Championship and NCAA appearance as they went 15-6.

Former Players as Coaches
Throughout Cindy Timchal’s coaching career, she has accumulated a growing coaching tree, as many of her former players have gone on to become coaches. In the 2011 season there were over 20 collegiate lacrosse coaches who had been coached by Cindy during her time as Maryland’s head coach. The following are a few of the coaches that represent five different leagues in Women’s lacrosse. To stand for the Big East, Jen Adams is the head coach of Loyola University in Maryland. Following in Timchal’s footsteps as the head coach for the University of Maryland is Cathy Reese. Additional Atlantic Coast Conference coaches include Maryland assistant, Quinn Carney, as well as Duke head coach Kerstin Kimmel, Duke assistant coach, Alex Kahoe, and Boston College associate coach, Acacia Walker. Cindy’s players are involved in the Colonial League through Katie Doolittle the head coach at Towson University, and Sonia Lamonica, Towson’s assistant coach. The NLC includes head coach of High Point’s team, Megan Cassara. Former players of Timchal’s who coach in the ALC, include head coach of Northwestern, Kelly Amonte Hiller, Head Coach of Pennsylvania State, Missy Doherty, and the head coach of Ohio State, Alexis Venechanos.

Coaching Style
Cindy Timchal’s coaching style proved versatile through her various techniques. As Maryland’s head coach, she hired Dr. Jerry Lynch, a well-known author and psychiatrist in order to mentally prepare her team. Cindy also hired Gary Gait as her assistant coach and valued his knowledge and perspective of women’s lacrosse. Timchal tested these resources, which translated into success on the field. A class act, Timchal recognizes the support she received from her administrators, assistants and players.