Ben DeLuca - Men's Lacrosse Coach - University of Delaware Athletics

Photo by: Mark Campbell

Ben DeLuca

Title:
Head Coach
Email:
menslacrosse@udel.edu

Coach DeLuca At A Glance

NCAA National Champion:
2014

NCAA National Finalist:
2009

NCAA Final Four:
2007, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2014

NCAA Tournament Appearances:
2000, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009,
2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2022, 2023

ACC Regular Season Champions:
2014

Ivy League Champions:
2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007,
2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013

Ivy League Tournament Champions:
2011, 2013

CAA Outright Regular Season Champions:
2021, 2023

CAA Tournament Champion:
2022, 2023

Ben DeLuca joined the University of Delaware as the head coach of the men’s lacrosse program in 2017, with his first season at the helm coming in 2018. He has enjoyed national success as a student-athlete, assistant coach and head coach throughout his career.

He is just the ninth coach in the 79-year history of the sport at the University of Delaware.

Since taking over the program, DeLuca has coached 46 all-conference performers and seven conference major award winners. He has additionally guided 10 Blue Hens who went on to earn USILA All-American honors. DeLuca’s impact on the academic achievement of his student-athletes has been equally impressive, resulting in program records for highest overall semester, year and cumulative team grade point average while producing six USILA Scholar All-America selections.

He led Delaware to four double-digit win seasons in his first six full seasons, making him the first head coach in the history of the program to accomplish that feat. Additionally, from 2018-24, he led the Blue Hens to six-straight CAA Tournament appearances. From 2018-25, DeLuca steered the Blue & Gold to seven-consecutive winning seasons at Delaware.

In 2023, DeLuca was named CAA Coach of the Year and helped lead the Blue Hens to their second straight CAA Championship with a win over Stony Brook. With a 13-5 season, the Blue Hens made it back to the NCAA tournament, advancing to the second round after a win against Marist 25-10. Delaware was ranked second in the NCAA for total goals (254) and scoring margin (5.65). The Blue Hens brought home two major awards in 2023 as Tye Kurtz was named CAA Offensive Player of the Year and Owen Grant was named the conference’s defensive player of the year. Grant became the first Fightin' Blue Hen to ever win three-consecutive defensive player of the year awards and the first Hen since John Grant Jr. to earn First Team All-America status. Kurtz joined Grant as Delaware’s other All-American.

The 2022 campaign under DeLuca was one of the most successful seasons in program history. The program’s 13 wins were the most in 15 years. The Blue Hens went on to defeat Towson in the CAA finals, and were crowned tournament champions for the first time since 2011. In the NCAA tournament, the Blue Hens picked up multiple wins against Robert Morris and No. 2 Georgetown en route to an appearance in the quarterfinals. It was the program’s first NCAA tournament win and appearance in the quarterfinals since 2007. Owen Grant, Tye Kurtz and Jake Govett were selected in the first round of the 2022 National Lacrosse League Draft. It was the first time the Blue Hens had multiple athletes selected in the first round in the program’s history.

The Blue Hens enjoyed a historic 2021 season under DeLuca’s watch. Delaware finished the year with a 10-3 overall mark and a 7-1 record in conference play en route to being crowned the outright CAA regular season champions for the first time in program history. The three losses on the year were the fewest in program history in a season with at least 10 games played since 1999. The Blue Hens also set the CAA record for the most conference wins in a single season.

In 2019, the Blue Hens set a program record with seven student-athletes earning All-CAA Accolades. Tye Kurtz became the program’s first CAA Rookie of the Year since 2004, while Charlie Kitchen was named the CAA Player of the Year. Matt DeLuca (no relation) earned the program’s first All-American honor since 2011, ranking in the top 10 in both saves per game and save percentage.

DeLuca came to Delaware with an impressive history of success as a student-athlete and coach at three of the nation’s top academic and NCAA Division I lacrosse-playing institutions - Cornell, Duke, and Harvard. During that time, he led teams to 14 NCAA Tournament appearances, including a national championship title as an assistant at Duke, a national runner-up finish as an associate head coach at Cornell, and three other NCAA semifinal appearances as a head coach and as an assistant.

Throughout his 26-year coaching career, DeLuca has recruited, developed and shared in the success of teams which produced a multitude of All-America selections including well more than a dozen First Team honorees. He has coached over forty First Team All-Ivy League selections, several First Team All-CAA and All-ACC selections, three Ivy League Rookie of Year selections, two CAA Rookie of the Year selections, seven Ivy League Player of the Year honorees, a pair of Lt. Raymond Enners Award winners (DI USILA Outstanding Player), an En. C.M. Kelly Award winner (DI USILA Outstanding Goalie), a Schmeisser Cup award winner (DI USILA Outstanding Defenseman), three recipients of the Lt. j.g. Donald MacGlaughlin, Jr. Award (DI USILA Outstanding Midfielder), two Jack Turnbull Award winners (DI USILA Outstanding Attackman), and a pair of Tewaaraton Award winners. DeLuca has guided defensive All-America honorees at four different institutions. Under DeLuca’s tutelage, Rob Pannell graduated after breaking a handful of Cornell, Ivy League and NCAA records, becoming the all-time leading scorer in Division I history (354), as well as the Cornell all-time assist leader (204).

DeLuca has invested in development of the young men under his guidance outside the realm of lacrosse as well, spearheading several lasting team community service endeavors, mentoring numerous Academic all-conference selections, more than a dozen USILA Academic All-America selections, multiple Academic All-America selections, and a pair of Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award winners.

In the community, DeLuca’s student-athletes have been heavily involved in the community, volunteering with such organizations as the Mario St. George Boiardi Foundation, B+ Foundation, One LOVE Foundation, HEADstrong Foundation, American Cancer Society, the American Red Cross, Children’s Dream Factory of Central New York, Family Reading Partnership of Central New York, children’s literacy, Team Impact, and the Army Ranger Lead the Way Fund.

DeLuca came to Delaware after two years serving as the Associate Head Coach at Harvard University. In his first season, DeLuca helped lead the Crimson to the Ivy League Championship game after knocking off top-seeded and No. 2 ranked Brown in the semifinals. At the conclusion of the year, three Crimson student-athletes were named to the USILA All-America teams, with a total of six individuals garnering All-Ivy League honors. In 2016, one Crimson player was recognized with USILA honors and three others earned All-Ivy League honors.

Prior to his time in Cambridge, DeLuca spent two seasons as an assistant coach and defensive coordinator under John Danowski at Duke University, helping the Blue Devils to the 2014 National Championship and the Atlantic Coast Conference regular season championship. DeLuca coached four defensive All-America honorees in his first season in Durham.

DeLuca began his coaching career at his alma mater and was an integral part of restoring the Cornell lacrosse program back to the upper echelon of Division I lacrosse during his time as an Assistant Coach, Recruiting Coordinator, Defensive Coordinator, Associate Head Coach and Head Coach. In total, DeLuca spent 17 years at Cornell, including four years as a player for the Big Red before serving as an assistant coach for two seasons. A brief two-year hiatus took DeLuca away from Ithaca and into the business world, but he returned in the summer of 2002 and he was promoted to the top assistant position and recruiting coordinator in the summer of 2003. He became the first Mario St. George Boiardi Assistant Coach of Men’s Lacrosse the following year and was promoted to Associate Head Coach following the 2007 season. His efforts helped to guide the Big Red to nine NCAA Tournament appearances from 2004 to 2013. Cornell competed in four NCAA national semifinal games, a national championship game and captured ten Ivy League Championships in eleven years during that span. DeLuca was named as the IMLCA Assistant Coach of the Year in 2007.

In his first season serving as Cornell’s head coach, DeLuca led the Big Red to a 14-3 record and became only the second coach in the history of the Ivy League to post an undefeated Ivy record in his first season, joining Ned Harkness (Cornell, 1966). After subsequently leading the Big Red to their first Ivy League Tournament Championship in program history, DeLuca became the first coach in the history of the Ivy League to lead his team to an 8-0 record in conference play as well as the first coach in Cornell history to lead the Big Red to the NCAA tournament in his first season.

The following year in 2012, despite losing Rob Pannell, the reigning USILA National Player of the Year, in just the second game of the season, DeLuca guided the Big Red as high as No. 3 in the national rankings and captured the program’s historic 700th win in program history over rival Syracuse. Cornell finished with a 9-4 record overall and a mark of 4-2 record in the league, good for a second-place finish in the league standings while advancing to the Ivy League Tournament semifinals.

In 2013 DeLuca led Cornell to an outstanding 14-4 record overall, losing three regular season games by a single goal. Cornell advanced to the NCAA Final Four with convincing playoff wins over the 6th and 3rd ranked teams in the country before falling in the National Semifinal to eventual National Champion Duke by 2 goals. Twelve student-athletes earned All-America recognition under DeLuca’s tutelage, including five first team selections.

DeLuca’s overall record as Cornell’s Head Coach was 37-11 (.771), and 16-2 (.889) in Ivy League play.

DeLuca has gained invaluable international coaching experience representing the United States as a member the U.S. Men’s National Team staff. DeLuca served as the Assistant General Manager for the 2018 U.S. Men’s National Team that captured the gold medal in the Federation of International Lacrosse World Championships in Netanya, Israel. DeLuca was primarily responsible for coaching the goaltenders and face-off unit while assisting Head Coach John Danowski in all facets of the game. DeLuca also served as an evaluator and scouting consultant for the 2014 USMNT that earned the silver medal in the FIL World Championships in Denver, Colorado in 2014.

A four-year letter winner on defense for the Big Red, DeLuca played for three years under legendary coach Richie Moran, before becoming a captain his senior year under former head coach Dave Pietramala. He was voted as the team’s Outstanding Senior Athlete for his leadership and dedication on and off the field, and was also honored with the Rick LaFrance Award given to the student-athlete who best combines mental and physical toughness along with honor and bravery despite injury. DeLuca earned a Bachelor of Science degree in nutritional sciences and biochemistry in 1998.

A native of Rochester, N.Y, DeLuca is married to the former Laurie Tortorelli, a former All-American goaltender and captain for the women’s lacrosse team at the University of Delaware. Laurie was a four-year starter in goal in 1999-2002 and led the Hens to the NCAA Tournament in 2000 and an America East conference title in 1999. She still ranks No. 2 all-time at Delaware with 754 saves and No. 3 in minutes played (3,767).

The DeLucas have two daughters, Elizabeth and Anne.