OWINGS MILLS, Md. – Stevenson men’s lacrosse eighth-year head coach Paul Cantabene was recently named to the Greater Baltimore Chapter of U.S. Lacrosse Hall of Fame Class of 2012. The ceremony will be held on January 21, 2012 at The Hillendale Country Club in Phoenix, Maryland.
Cantabene is the third member of the Stevenson athletics department to be inducted, joining former head women’s lacrosse coach and current administrative coordinator M.C. McFadden, Class of 2003 and Director of Physical Education Dick Watts, Class of 1998.
Joining Cantabene in the Class of 2012 will be Sheehan Stanwick Burch, Courtney Martinez Connor, Lisa Dowling Costello, Betsy Givens Economou, Kathy Altemus Franz, Tim Hormes, Jeff Jackson, Robert Francis Lindsey and Jim Wilkerson.
Cantabene was inducted in the Rochester Chapter of the U.S. Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 2003 and was honored with the President’s Medal at the University’s graduation on May 21, 2010.
Regarded as one of the greatest face-off specialists of all-time, Cantabene has bulit Stevenson into one of the elite programs in Division III. In seven seasons, he has totaled a 97-30 record while leading the Mustangs to three consecutive NCAA Division III Men’s Lacrosse Championship appearances, the 2010 CAC title and the 2006 ECAC South Championship.
Cantabene has led the Mustangs to a school record for wins in six of his seven seasons, six conference championship games.
During that time, the Mustangs have appeared in five conference championship games, made two appearances in the NCAA Division III Men’s Lacrosse Championship, won its first conference title in 2010 and an ECAC championship in 2006.
Stevenson has also been ranked in the top 20 the last five consecutive seasons, including at No. 1 the last three. Since 2008, the program has had 26 All-America selections, including 17 the last two, while boasting two USILA Attackman of the Year awards, one Outstanding Player of the Year and one Outstanding Defensive Player.
The Mustangs have also posted five Scholar All-Americans since 2009.
In 2009, Cantabene was named College Coach of the Year by the Maryland State Lacrosse Coaches Association and in 2010 was an assistant coach for the U.S. national team that won the 2010 world title with a 12-10 victory over rival Canada at the FIL World Championship in Manchester, England.
A long-time assistant coach at the Division I level, Cantabene spent nine combined seasons at Maryland, Towson and Johns Hopkins before coming to Stevenson. He began his coaching career at The McDonogh School where he spent two seasons as the offensive coordinator in 1994 and 1995.
A 1993 graduate of Loyola (Md.), Cantabene played four seasons for the Greyhounds, earning second team All-America honors as a senior before embarking on what was a 13-year professional career on the indoor, outdoor and club levels.
Cantabene played 11 seasons in the National Lacrosse League from 1994-2004 and was a three-time NLL All-Star and 1999 All-Star Game MVP.
Cantabene began his outdoor career in Major League Lacrosse when he was drafted in the seventh round of the 2001 MLL Inaugural Draft by the Baltimore Bayhawks. In six seasons in the league, he played in five championships, winning three in 2002, 2004 and 2005.
In addition, Cantabene was a five-time All-Star, two-time All-MLL selection and 2002 recipient of the SoBe Iron Lizard award. He still holds the MLL career record with 1,015 face-off wins and 538 ground balls and is also the single-season record holder with a .633 face-off percentage and 156 ground balls.
On Aug. 21, 2010, Cantabene was named to MLL’s 10-Year Anniversary Team and in its August 2008 issue, Lacrosse Magazine named him as one of the top 10 players in the history of the MLL.
A native of Rochester, N.Y., Cantabene is married to the former Tracey Whetstone and the couple currently resides in Seven Valleys, Pennsylvania with their two children, daughter Lilly, and son, Curry.
For more information on this year’s event, please click here.
