Kyle Georgalas, a former first-team All-Ivy and honorable mention All-America selection as a player at Cornell, was named as a member of head coach Jeff Tambroni’s coaching staff upon his graduation in the summer of 2005.
During his four years on the sidelines, he has helped Cornell post at least 11 wins each season, including a 15-win campaign in 2007. Also, in his eight years as both a player and a coach, Georgalas has been a part of seven Ivy League championship teams.
As an assistant coach on Tambroni’s staff, Georgalas undertakes a myriad of responsibilities. On the field, Georgalas is in charge of face-offs and substitutions, while assisting in all facets of the defensive unit. He also serves as recruiting coordinator for the staff as well as performing other administrative duties.
This past year, Georgalas helped lead Cornell to a 13-4 record and its first trip to the national championship game since the 1988 season. The Big Red also posted a mark of 5-1 in the Ivy League, winning a share of its seventh-straight Ivy League title, the longest stretch since Cornell won 10-straight championships between 1974 and 1983. Georgalas coached a face-off unit that ranked 10th in the country with a .552 winning percentage, despite losing one of its biggest threats, Tommy Schmicker ’09, to a season-ending injury less than one month into the season. The unit was carried by John Glynn ’09, who finished the year ranked eighth in the country with a .574 winning percentage.
In 2008, Georgalas helped the Big Red to an 11-4 record and its sixth straight Ivy League title with a mark of 5-1 in the conference. Georgalas helped Cornell become one of the most dominating face-off teams in the country that year, finishing the season ranked third in the nation with a .631 win percentage. Under his tutelage, Glynn and Schmicker finished the year ranked first and second, respectively, in the Ivy League for face-off winning percentage. Glynn’s mark of .633 was good enough for third in the nation, while Schmicker’s .611 winning percentage would have ranked fifth in the nation, but he fell just short of the minimum attempts required to be ranked.
In just his second season, Georgalas helped Cornell to one of the greatest campaigns in recent years as the Big Red capped an undefeated regular season (13-0) with the program's first trip to the national semifinals since 1988. The team finished the year with a 15-1 record, one victory shy of the school record (16 in 1976) and finished its Ivy League schedule with a perfect 6-0 record. That season, the team won over 50 percent of its face-offs for the first time since 2004, while Schmicker improved by 11 percent from the previous season.
In his first season on the sidelines in 2006, Georgalas helped the Big Red as it went 5-1 in the conference, winning a share of its fourth-straight Ivy League title. The Big Red also won 11 games in the regular season for the first time since the 1987 team went into the NCAA tournament with an undefeated record of 11-0.
As a player, Georgalas headed up the Big Red defense in 2005 and served as a team captain during his final two seasons. During his senior campaign, Cornell held its opponents to fewer than eight goals per game, largely due to the fact the Georgalas held opposing attackers in check throughout the year. The team's most respected leader, Georgalas collected 37 ground balls as a senior, leading the Big Red's close defense unit in that department. He was selected to compete for the North team in the 64th annual North-South Classic, and was drafted by the New Jersey Pride in the fifth round of the 2005 Major League Lacrosse collegiate draft.
During his senior season, Georgalas helped Cornell to 11-3 overall record, completing its first perfect 6-0 Ivy League season and its first outright Ivy title since 1987. The 2005 squad then advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals for the second straight season where they fell to national runner-up Duke, 11-8.
