Elite 2024
Summer Schedules
2024 Blue Tournament Schedule
| Date | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| June 3-4, 2023 | Project South | Georgia |
| June 17-18, 2023 | Primetime Inv. | Connecticut |
| June 24-25, 2023 | Crab Feast | Maryland |
| July 14-16, 2023 | NLF Championship | Pennsylvania |
2024 Orange Tournament Schedule
| Date | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| June 3-4, 2023 | Project South | Georgia |
| June 17-18, 2023 | BSK 2 | Maryland |
| June 24-25, 2023 | Crab Feast | Maryland |
| July 14-16, 2023 | NLF Championship | Pennsylvania |
Practice Schedules
See Player First team page for Practice Schedule.
Coaches
Andy Pons
President
Bryan Wallace
Senior Director
Ryan McKay
Coach
Curtis Gilbert
Coach
Andy Pons
President
Andy serves as the Director of Lacrosse Operations for Thunder lacrosse. In this capacity, Coach Pons assists our coaching staff and Board of Directors as he oversees and organizes our camps, clinics, annual evaluations and acts as recruiting coordinator in support of our high school coaches and players. Andrew is also the head coach at Woodward Academy. Andy was named Atlanta Metro South Coach of the Year in 2015. He has an extensive background in lacrosse being born and raised in Baltimore, MD. He graduated in 1998 with a degree in physical education from McDaniel College, where he was a three-sport athlete. (Soccer, Basketball, Lacrosse) He won the Athlete of the Year in 1988. He also was a three-sport All-Metro athlete at John Carroll and is a member of his high school Hall of Fame in three sports. Andy spent two years as an assistant coach under Hall of Famer, John Tucker, with the Boston Cannons of the MLL. He has spoken at numerous coach’s conventions and clinics around the country having recently presented at the US Lacrosse Georgia coaches clinic in January. Coach Pons has been married to his high school sweetheart Chrissy for twenty-seven years and has three children. His middle son, Mac, played lacrosse at the University of Maryland, where he and the Terps won the 2017 National Championship. Fear the Turtle!!!!
Bryan Wallace
Senior Director
Coach Wallace grew up in Western Massachusetts where he was a 3-sport athlete at Minnechaug Regional HS in Soccer, Basketball, and Lacrosse. As a Lacrosse player, he was a 3-year starting Attackman, he helped guide his team to 3 Western Mass State Finals appearances was named 3x All-League, 3x All-Region, 3x All-State, 2x time team captain is the number 4 All-time leading scorer with 291 career points. Coach Wallace attended D-III the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth where he was a 4-year starter and scored 98 career points being named 2nd Team All-Conference in his senior year. Coach Wallace entered into coaching upon graduation at DIII Massachusetts Maritime Academy where he was the Offensive Assistant Coach. Coach Bwall continued his education and coaching career at DIII Springfield College as Graduate Assistant helping guide the Pride SC back-to-back NEWMAC titles and placed 14 players on the All-Conference team while earning his Master’s Degree in Higher Education. Coach Wallace moved to South Florida and was named Associate Head Coach at Gulliver Prep in Miami, FL. While at Gulliver, he posted 4 FHSAA Final Four Appearances, 4 District Titles, coaching 8 US Lacrosse All-Americans, 66 All-State players, 72 All-County players. Wallace moved to Marietta GA and was named HC at Lassiter HS. In one season at Lassiter HS, he earned the Region Coach of the Year, won the Region 2 Championship, GHSA State Quarter Finalist, 4 players named All-State, 6 players named All-County. Coach Wallace was named Director of Lacrosse at Centennial HS in Roswell GA in 2012. As Head Community Coach for the Knights he lead Centennial to 141-33 (.833%) record in 8 seasons. Reaching 6 straight GHSA State playoff appearances, 2019, 2018, 2017 GHSA Semi-Finalist, 2016, 2015, 2014 GHSA Quarter Finalist, Winning the 2013 State Championship. 3x Region Championships, 3x Region Coach of the Year. Under the guidance of Coach Wallace, 24 players named US Lacrosse All-Americans, 57 players named All-State, 64 players named All-Conference, 2 Atlanta Journal-Constitution Players of the Year. 2 Under Armour All-Americans (Senior Game), 1 Under Armour All-American MVP, 1 Warrior/US Lacrosse South Player of the Year, 1 Lax Records Player of the Year, 116 Scholar Athlete Award winners, 15 Senior Student Athlete Award winners, Pro Alumni; Nate Solomon. In 2019 Coach Wallace was announced as the Assistant Varsity Coach/Offensive Coordinator at Roswell High School. He joins the Hornets from Crosstown rival Centennial. Coach Bwall has been coaching club with Thunder in the metro Atlanta area for 10 years and is currently the Senior Director, as well as an Elite and National team coach. He resides in Roswell, with his wife Tara their daughter Greer and dog Luna.
Ryan McKay
Coach
Ryan McKay enters his third season with the Piedmont men’s lacrosse program in the fall of 2019 after joining the program as an assistant coach in the fall of 2017. McKay’s offense produced record breaking numbers in 2019 as the Lions set a program record for points (291), goals (200), shots / shots per game (798 / 44.33) and shots on goal / per game (437 / 24.28). Piedmont claimed the 2019 USA South Tournament with wins over Methodist (11-6) and Huntingdon (11-10) while attackman Brady Jenks and midfielder Josh Cobbina earned second-team All-Conference honors In 2018, the Lions earned their first winning season and first nine win season as they earned a bid for the USA South Tournament. The Lions fell in overtime to Methodist. Prior to Piedmont, McKay served as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Millsaps. McKay helped lead the Majors to eight wins during his stint as an assistant including winning the first two contests of his coaching career. The win in the 2016 season opener was the first 1-0 start for the Majors in program history and the only time the Majors have defeated Piedmont. McKay’s primary responsibilities were working with the offense and man up while also working to create practice and game plans for the Majors. In 2016, he helped the Majors finish fourth in the country in caused turnovers per game. The Majors also had a pair of all-conference selections during McKay’s time with the team. Prior to being hired as an assistant lacrosse coach at Millsaps, McKay volunteered his time after graduation to continue helping the Majors from the fall of 2014 until he was hired in January 2016. He spent time working one-on-one with athletes on different facets of the game including stick work, dodging, and field awareness. As a standout student athlete for the Majors, McKay played attack and midfield as a four-year starter and three-time captain. He is the all-time assists leader in program history and is third in career points with 105. McKay posted his best season his senior year in 2014 with 27 goals and 30 assists. In 2014, McKay scored nine more goals than he had totaled in the previous three seasons and doubled the total number of assists he had in his career. He also finished in the top 40 in the country in assists that season. McKay was a two-time All-SAA Academic team member and two-time SAA Sportsmanship team honoree. While in college, McKay began coaching at MadLax Lacrosse serving as the Head Coach of the program in Madison, Mississippi for ages 7-18. McKay has served in that capacity since 2013 providing leadership and instruction to players to develop their skills both on and off the field. McKay is a 2014 graduate of Millsaps College with a bachelor’s degree in education and a minor in Spanish. He was also a dual sport athlete with the Majors competing in both lacrosse and basketball. He graduated from St. Pius X Catholic High School in 2010 and was a member of the men’s lacrosse team for three seasons.
Curtis Gilbert
Coach
Curtis Gilbert was hired as Berry’s head men’s lacrosse coach in September 2013. Over his tenure, Gilbert has compiled a record of 54-27 (113-76 career record) and an SAA record of 24-9. Gilbert has coached 43 All-SAA selections, 50 SAA Academic Honor Roll honorees and two SAA Offensive Players of the Year. He also led the 2015 squad to a regular-season title. The 2017 season saw Berry College earn its first All-American with SAA Offensive Player of the Year, Quentin Johnson earning distinction. He was also named a Scholar All-American. Johnson followed Cory Hall and Jack Chase who both earned Scholar All-America honors under Gilbert’s guidance in 2015. In 2018, Gilbert was named SAA Coach of the Year and was selected to coach the USILA/Nike North-South game. Gilbert arrived from New England College in Henniker, N.H. where he led the Pilgrims to a record of 10-7 and a runner-up finish in the North Atlantic Conference in 2013. In 2012, he led NEC to a berth into the NCAA DIII Men’s Lacrosse Tournament after winning the program’s first North Atlantic Conference (NAC) Championship. Over his six seasons at NEC Gilbert had an overall coaching record of 59-49 and a conference record of 37-19. Gilbert’s teams played in four championship games over his six years at New England College and produced two All-Americans, the first in NEC’s history. Prior to Gilberts arrival at NEC the team was coming off of a 1-13 season. At NEC, Coach Gilbert placed sixteen players on the All-Conference team, eight All-Academic athletes, four ECAC New England All-Stars, two All-Americans, two USILA North/South game participants, one Scholar-Athlete of the Year, one Offensive Player of the Year, and two others drafted into the NLL Professional league. Prior to New England College, Gilbert was an assistant lacrosse coach at Denison University in Granville, Ohio. While at Denison, Gilbert helped lead the Big Red to an impressive 20 wins, two NCAC Championships and two NCAA Tournament appearances. Before Denison, Gilbert had stints as an assistant lacrosse coach at Washington College and Whittier College. Over two seasons at Washington College Gilbert led the Shoremen to a record of 28-8, a school-record 15-game winning streak, and an NCAA semifinal appearance. At Whittier, over two years he helped the Poets to a record of 21-3 and two national tournament appearances, including one NCAA quarterfinal and one NCAA semifinal appearance. Gilbert is a graduate of Washington College, where he was a four-year member of the men’s lacrosse team. While at WC, Gilbert was a member of the 1998 NCAA Division III national championship team and garnered All-Conference accolades. In addition to coaching lacrosse, Gilbert serves on various committees including the USILA Top 20 poll and All-American Committee. He graduated with a master’s degree in management and strategic leadership from NEC. Gilbert currently resides in Rome, GA with his wife, who also works at Berry, and his two daughters.