08/29/2023
Steve Beville, one of the nation’s most successful collegiate men’s lacrosse coaches, has announced his retirement after 17 years as head coach at SUNY Cortland.
“I am incredibly grateful to have had the opportunity to be a part of 17 amazing journeys at Cortland,” Beville said. “I walk away with a heartfelt appreciation for all the athletes I have coached and built relationships with. They are an incredible group of characters and athletes! I am looking forward to seeing the future Red Dragon teams compete at the highest levels.”
Beville’s record at Cortland (including an abbreviated season in 2020) was 255-65 (.797), making him Cortland’s career victories leader. He led the Red Dragons to the NCAA Division III championship game four times, with a national title victory in 2009, and he also guided Cortland to the national semifinals in both 2013 and 2010, the quarterfinals in 2011, 2014, 2015 and 2017, and the second round in 2016, 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2022.
“Steve has given a great deal to SUNY Cortland and our men’s lacrosse team, including a national championship trophy,” said Cortland Director of Athletics Mike Urtz. “We are eternally grateful for his time here along with all of his accomplishments.”
Prior to Cortland, Beville coached 10 seasons at Colorado College (100-49 from 1989-98) and eight years at Division I University of Vermont (48-62 from 1999-2006). His overall coaching record of 403-176 over 35 years ranks him sixth in victories all-time among coaches on all NCAA levels and fourth in Division III through the end of the 2023 season.
A native of Syracuse, N.Y., Beville graduated from West Genesee High School in 1981 and went on to enjoy a highly successful playing career at Washington College in Maryland, graduating in 1985. He was a two-time Division III National Defenseman of the Year and played in three Division III national championship games.
Beville served as an assistant coach at Washington College in 1986 and 1987 and the team reached the national title contest in 1986. He was inducted into the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2002.
Beville led Cortland to undefeated regular-season records in both 2012 (21-1 overall) and 2013 (19-1 overall), as well as a 19-2 overall record during Cortland’s 2009 national championship season. He was selected as the 2009 United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) Division III National Coach of the Year after his team won four NCAA tournament games, capped by a 9-7 victory over Gettysburg in the national title game in Foxborough, Mass.
In Beville’s tenure at Cortland, the Red Dragons won 13 of a possible 16 State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) titles (2008-16, 2018-19, 2021-22) and made 15 of a possible 16 NCAA tournament appearances. Beville was named SUNYAC Coach of the Year nine times (2008, 2010, 2012, 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2019, plus Coaching Staff of the Year in 2021 and 2022) and he was voted as the SUNYAC Coach of the Decade for 2010-19 with a combined 163-38 record during that stretch.
Beville led Cortland to the national finals in his first two seasons in 2007 and 2008. The 2007 squad, which finished 15-6, earned an NCAA at-large berth and won three NCAA road games before losing to Salisbury in the finals in Baltimore. The 2008 team finished 18-2 and won three NCAA games at home. The Red Dragons lost to Salisbury in the finals in Foxborough.
The Red Dragons broke the school record for wins in a season with their 19 victories in 2009, then broke the mark again with their 21 wins in 2012. Cortland advanced to the NCAA championship game in 2012 before losing to Salisbury in a battle of unbeaten teams in Foxborough. In 2013, Cortland finished 19-1, with its lone loss an overtime home setback to RIT in the national semifinals.
The Iroquois Nationals men’s lacrosse team named Beville as its head coach for the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) World Championships in Denver in July 2014. He led the team to its first-ever medal with a bronze finish at the 38-nation event. Beville also served as an assistant coach on the 2012 Iroquois Nationals U19 (under-19) squad that won a bronze medal at the World Championships in Finland. During that tournament, the team upset Team USA for its first-ever win versus an American team in international competition.
Beville was a 2010 inductee into the U.S. Lacrosse Upstate New York Hall of Fame.