MURFREESBORO, N.C. - Associate Vice President for Athletics, Patrick Mashuda, announced in June 2024 that Philip "P.R." Simshauser will be promoted to the head coach position. Simshauser has served as the assistant men's lacrosse coach for the last two seasons, helping the Hawks to back-to-back Conference Carolinas Tournament appearances.
"We are excited that P.R. has jumped on board to help lead us through the coaching transition," stated Mashuda. "P.R. is a diligent worker and a student of the game. We look forward to seeing what he can bring to the program in keeping with the tradition of building the team affectionately known as the 'boro boys."
Simshauser worked closely with the face-off position and headed up the Hawks on the defensive side of the ball the last two years. P.R. comes to Chowan after spending a season at DIII Maine Maritime Academy as the Defensive Coordinator. P.R. worked with goalies and face-off men while with the Mariners. Before the season was cut short, the Mariners were 3-1 with 57.1% save percentage and 58.4% face-off win percentage.
"I couldn't be more excited to take this next step professionally here at Chowan," said Simshauser. "The opportunity to continue working with our guys and build upon the strong culture, values, and traditions we have established under Coach Seese's leadership is a distinct honor for which I am very grateful. For me, Chowan University is a special place because it is an institution built on the cornerstone of relationships, and the ability to stay and continue this journey with our lacrosse family is very important to me. I want to thank Coach Mashuda and Coach Long for giving me this opportunity to lead the program."
Prior to his time with Maine Maritime Academy, P.R. had coaching stints at Valley Regional High School (Connecticut), where he helped the team qualify for the state playoffs, Tucson Extreme Lacrosse (Arizona), and The Harvey School (New York).
Simshauser also has experience running camps with the Arizona Winter Lacrosse camp and Syracuse Lacrosse camp.P.R. has also worked a career in politics and government in analytics and campaigns in the Washington, D.C. area.
The Yorktown Heights, N.Y. native played collegiate lacrosse at Syracuse before transferring to Arizona. Simshauser received his bachelor's degree from Arizona in Political Science in 2007.
The first year skipper continued, "I can't wait to get everyone back on campus and back to work! While some things will change within our program, our underlying ethos will remain constant. The Chowan Hawks will always play fast, play smart, and play together."
