Kingswood Oxford Appoints New Boys’ Varsity Lacrosse Coach

Kingswood Oxford is very pleased to announce that Rich Mok has been named the new varsity boys’ lacrosse coach, effective this spring. 

Mok has been involved in lacrosse for over 30 years, both playing and coaching at every level including youth, high school, club, and two-way lacrosse. He also coached at the collegiate level at Providence College and was Director of Lacrosse Operations at the Farmington Sports Arena. Mok graduated from Colgate University, and played at the international level for the Thailand National Team from 2013-2014, an experience he describes as “incredible, and like nothing else.” 

Coaching allows Mok to continue to be a part of the game he is passionate about, and he uses his playing experience to impart his wisdom as a teacher. He sees coaching as a way to compete, but on a different level.

His coaching philosophy goes beyond the field. “I don’t coach lacrosse; I coach young men,” he said. “There is much more to playing than wins and losses and skill development.” Mok wants his players to be empowered to know what to do on the field or in a practice without him telling them. On game day, he considers his job done if his players know what to do and can take the lead.

Practice is also vitally important to Mok. He wants his players to use this time and space to develop decision-making skills on the field and approach practice with energy and intensity. His goal is to give the players the ability to self-diagnose and self-correct when their technique needs improvement, so when game day rolls around, he plays a support role.“To the extent that I can support our players’ development, growth, and health in those areas, it only makes for stronger lacrosse players and a stronger lacrosse program,” Mok said.

Director of Athletics Josh Balabuch said, “We are very excited to welcome Coach Rich Mok to Wyvern Nation. His extensive lacrosse background and connections to local youth organizations made him a prime candidate for the position. We are enthusiastic about Rich’s direction for the program.”