Scott Nelson was named head coach of the Binghamton lacrosse program on May 18, 2011. Nelson enters his fifth season at the helm in 2016. In 2015, the Bearcats faced a daunting schedule, facing four NCAA Tournament teams. They set a program record, scoring 10.7 goals per game. BU won four road games, including its first-ever victory at UMBC. Chris Bechle and Dan Mazurek each earned All-America East Second Team honors, while Sean Gilroy and Ben Kocis were both All-Rookie Team members. Zach Scaduto was named to the All-Academic Team.
In 2014, he guided the Bearcats to their best conference record since 2004 and was honored with America East Co-Coach of the Year honors. In 28 years of coaching in collegiate lacrosse, he has recruited and coached more than 100 All-Americans and his teams have won at nearly a 65% clip, including three national titles on the Division III level.
Nelson’s squad in 2014 had a banner year that resulted in a trip back to the America East tournament for the first time since 2011. The Bearcats went 4-1 in conference play, earning a two seed at the America East Championship. Six players were named on the first two all-conference teams and Binghamton also added a pair of All-Rookie and All-Academic selections. His Coach of the Year award is the third he’s received since 2004 (2011-MAAC Coach of the Year, 2004-New England Coach of the Year).
His second season with the program saw his squad secure a 5-9 record, just narrowly missing the America East tournament on the last day of the regular season. He helped transform the defense in 2013 as the Bearcats finished first in the country in man-down defense (allowing just four goals in 29 opportunities). BU had a pair of all-conference and all-academic selections under his watch during 2013.
In 2012, Nelson guided the Bearcats to one of their best offensive seasons in school history. The team scored a program-record 9.54 goals per game and had a pair of players break the single season points record in just 13 contests. Four players were named to the all-conference squad in 2012 and a pair of student-athletes were selected as all-academic performers.
Nelson served as the head coach of Marist from 2009-11, guiding the Red Foxes to eight wins in each of his last two seasons. His 2011 team finished the regular season by winning seven straight games (program’s longest win streak), reaching the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament for the second consecutive year. They went 4-2 in league play to finish as regular season runners-up. At the conclusion of the 2011 season, Nelson was named MAAC Coach of the Year. His 2010 Marist team won the most regular season games (8) in six years and reached the MAAC tournament for the first time in five seasons.
Before taking over at Marist, Nelson was the head coach at Brown for six seasons, leading the Ivy League members to a top-10 national ranking in 2004 and 2005. His 2002 squad went 4-2 in the Ivy, giving Brown its first winning conference season in five years. In 2004, Nelson was named New England Coach of the Year after his team went 9-5 and was nationally ranked in the top-10.
Nelson made a name for himself while at Division III Nazareth, where he led the Rochester-based school to NCAA titles in 1992, 1996 and 1997. He was the program’s inaugural coach in 1986 and produced 12 NCAA appearances in 15 years, including five national semifinal berths and four straight trips to the championship game (1995-98). Nelson’s 1996 Golden Flyers went a perfect 15-0 en route to the program’s second NCAA crown. He never had a losing season at Nazareth and concluded his tenure there with 10 consecutive NCAA appearances and 13 straight seasons with 10 or more wins. His 177-40 record at Nazareth represented one of the highest win percentages (82%) in the nation over that span.
He began his coaching career at Rutgers, where he was an assistant from 1982-85. He is a 1982 graduate of North Carolina State, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in psychology and was a standout lacrosse player.
Nelson has been inducted into three Halls of Fame: the Rochester Lacrosse Hall of Fame, Hudson Valley Lacrosse Hall of Fame and the Nazareth Hall of Fame. He has served on numerous national-level lacrosse committees, including the NCAA Lacrosse Rules Committee, the NCAA Regional Tournament Selection Committee and the Division III All-American committee (chairman). Nelson was a member of the USA Team Selection Committee and was a finalist for the Team USA coaching staff.
Scott and his wife, Lynne, have three sons, Tucker, Jake and Jared. Lynne, a former elite soccer player at Nazareth, is also a member of that school’s Hall of Fame. Tucker wrapped up an outstanding career at BU in 2015.
BU Coaching Record
Year W-L AE
2015 4-9 2-4
2014 7-8 4-1
2013 5-9 1-4
2012 4-9 1-4
Total 20-35 8-13
