NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Andy Shay, Forst Family Head Coach of Men's Lacrosse, has announced that Noah Fossner will join his staff as an Assistant Coach.
 
"We are very excited to have a coach of Noah's caliber joining the program," said Shay.  "He brings a wealth of experience on the defensive side of the ball.  He has coached incredible defensive units and goalies over the years.  Having known him for close to 20 years since he was a player at Delaware, I'm confident he will fit right in here at Yale."
 
Fossner comes to Yale after a four-year stint at UMass, where he served as Defensive Coordinator, Recruiting Coordinator, and Goalie Coach. During his tenure, he helped lead the team to its first nine-win season since 2019 and secured a fourth-consecutive conference playoff appearance. The 2025 defensive unit ranked No. 14 in scoring defense, No. 9 in man-down defense, and No. 19 nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency. That same year, junior defenseman Kyle Swanson earned Second Team All-A-10 honors, while freshman goalie Owen Salanger received All-Rookie recognition and USA Lacrosse Honorable Mention All-America honors, finishing 13th nationally in goals against and 10th in save percentage. In 2024, the defense ranked No. 25 in scoring defense and No. 3 nationally in man-down defense. In 2023, Fossner oversaw a defensive unit that finished the season ranked third nationally in both scoring defense and man-down defense. He also mentored standout goalie Matt Knote, the 2024 A-10 Goaltender of the Year, 2023 A-10 Defensive Player of the Year, USILA Third Team All-American, and USILA Academic All-American. Over the years at UMass, Fossner developed two All-America honorees, eight First Team All-Conference selections, two Second Team honorees, eight All-Rookie Team members, and five NEILA All-New England selections.
 
"I am honored to join the Yale Lacrosse program," said Fossner. "I want to sincerely thank Coach Andy Shay for the opportunity and am excited to work alongside an outstanding staff who are great leaders and teachers of the game. I look forward to beginning our work in pursuing competitive excellence within the Ivy League and nationally."
 
Before his arrival at Massachusetts, Fossner spent four seasons at his alma mater where the Blue Hens' defensive units ranked in the top-20 nationally for three consecutive years (2019-21) on his watch. In 2021 he helped guide Delaware to 10 victories for the second time in as many full seasons, the most wins in Colonial Athletic Association history (seven), the CAA Regular Season title and the squad's third-consecutive berth into the CAA Tournament. From 2018 to 2021, Fossner coached 10 players to 23 all-conference accolades and mentored All-American goalkeeper Matt DeLuca and CAA Defensive Player of the Year and All-American defenseman Owen Grant.
 
Prior to returning to Delaware, Fossner spent the 2017 season at Harvard as the Crimson's lacrosse operations coordinator and was a volunteer assistant/goalie coach at Boston University in 2016. While at BU he helped guide the Terriers to their first winning season in program history and coached All-Patriot League midfielders Cal Dearth and Sam Talkow as well as Second Team All-Patriot League defenseman Greg Wozniak.
 
In his first stint on the Delaware staff, Fossner served as an assistant coach (2014) and defensive coordinator (2015) and developed a defensive unit that ranked 18th in the NCAA in scoring defense in 2014. He coached six All-CAA honorees, two All-Academic selections and helped goalie Conor Peaks finish top-20 in the nation in goals against average and save percentage in 2014.
 
Fossner got his start in the coaching ranks as a volunteer assistant at Rutgers during the 2012 and 2013 seasons. During his tenure with the Scarlet Knights he mentored BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Year Kris Alleyne and coached BIG EAST Midfielder of the Year, All-American and Scholar All-American Will Mangan.
 
As a student-athlete at Delaware, Fossner was a three-year starter, team captain, three-time CAA champion, three-time NCAA Tournament participant and 2007 NCAA semifinalist. He garnered CAA All-Tournament team recognition twice, was the 2010 CAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player, 2010 All-CAA goaltender, Alumni Association Team MVP, 2011 USILA North vs. South All-Star Game MVP and a three-time Scholar-Athlete.