Tar Heel Lacrosse Camp: Coaches

Joe Breschi, a 1990 University of North Carolina alumnus, first-team All-America defenseman and former assistant coach for the Tar Heels, became the 12th head men's lacrosse coach in Carolina history in June 2008. Breschi came to Chapel Hill from The Ohio State University where he has served as the head men's lacrosse coach for the past 11 seasons. Breschi was an assistant coach at UNC and Brown for seven seasons prior to his stint in Columbus with the Buckeyes and has 18 seasons of collegiate coaching experience overall.

A native of Baltimore, Md., and a 1986 alumnus of the Loyola-Blakefield School, Breschi compiled a 92-63 overall record in his 11 years at OSU along with a 34-18 regular-season Great Western Lacrosse League mark. The Buckeyes shared GWLL regular-season titles in 1999, 2003 and 2008 and won the conference championship outright in 2004. The Buckeyes have had seven winning seasons in their last eight years and have made NCAA Tournament appearances in 2003, 2004 and 2008. Under Breschi, Ohio State had three double-figure winning seasons, going 10-3 in 1999, 12-4 in 2004 and 11-6 this past season.

In Breschi's 11th season at OSU in 2008, the Buckeyes enjoyed their most successful campaign in school history. Ohio State finished 11-6 overall and won its first NCAA Tournament game in history by defeating No. 8-seeded Cornell 15-7 in the NCAA first round on the Big Red's home field in Ithaca, N.Y. The Buckeyes shared the Great Western Lacrosse League regular-season title with Notre Dame and Denver and reached the finals of the first-ever GWLL Tournament. Amongst the Buckeyes 11 wins in 2008 was a 14-11 triumph over North Carolina on April 12, 2008 in Baltimore. It was Ohio State's first in 14 tries versus the Tar Heels.

Four Buckeyes were named All-Americas in 2008, including second-team attackman Kevin Buchanan, who was also the fifth pick in last month's Major League Lacrosse draft. Four Buckeyes were GWLL first-team selections in '08 and another four were second-team choices. He has coached Ohio State players to 128 academic All-Big Ten honors and 217 Ohio State Scholar-Athlete awards in his 11 seasons at Columbus. Breschi is a three-time GWLL coach of the year selection, gaining the nod in 1999, 2003 and 2004.

Breschi was one of the finest lacrosse players in the history of the Atlantic Coast Conference while playing for legendary UNC lacrosse coach Willie Scroggs from 1987-90. He was also a member of two U.S. National Teams. After graduating from Carolina in 1990, Breschi coached at his alma mater for two seasons before going to Brown University as the head assistant coach from 1993-97. Breschi was the chief assistant at UNC under Dave Klarmann in 1991 and 1992 and was part of a staff that captured ACC titles in 1991 and 1992 and UNC's fourth NCAA title in 1991. The Tar Heels compiled a stellar 28-3 record during Breschi's assistant coaching stint.

Success at North Carolina came not only as a coach for Breschi, but also as a player. He was an All-ACC selection in both 1989 and 1990 and was selected to play in the prestigious USILA North-South All-Star game in 1990. He was a first team All-America pick on defense in 1990 and an honorable mention All-America in 1989. After captaining the Tar Heels his senior season to the NCAA semifinals and an ACC title, Breschi was selected as UNC's nominee for the 1990 Anthony J. McKevlin Award, given annually to the outstanding male athlete in the ACC. In 2002, Breschi was named to the prestigious Atlantic Coast Conference 50th Anniversary Men's Lacrosse Team, honoring the Top 50 players in league history. He was a member of U.S. National Teams that played in the World Lacrosse Games in 1994 and 1998. Breschi earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in communications from Carolina in 1990.

Breschi and his wife Julie have five children, the late Michael Breschi as well as, Samantha, 6, Abigail, 4, Lucy, 2, and Emily, 1.

Pat Myers, the offensive coordinator at Bucknell University the past three seasons, has been named as a full-time assistant coach and offensive coordinator for the University of North Carolina men's lacrosse program. Tar Heel head coach Joe Breschi made the official announcement Friday.Myers has been designated by Breschi as the chief assistant on his staff and will also serve as the recruiting coordinator.

Breschi, a 1990 UNC alumnus, was hired last month as the Tar Heels' new head coach after he spent 11 seasons as the head coach at Ohio State. Myers joins Breschi as well as full-time assistant coach Greg Paradine, who has been on the Tar Heel staff since 2002, and new volunteer assistant coach Brian Holman in completing Breschi's coaching staff for 2008-09.

Myers comes to Chapel Hill after completing assistant coaching stints at Bucknell University, Cornell University and his alma mater, Ohio State. Myers was a standout lacrosse player at OSU from 2000-03 and was recruited to be a Buckeye by Breschi, who started in Columbus in 1997. Myers earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Sport and Leisure Studies in June 2003 from Ohio State with a specialization in coaching and leisure management. He was a four-year Dean's List student and Ohio State Scholar-Athlete and he was named Academic All-Big Ten three successive years from 2001-03.

A native of Maine, Myers has been an assistant coach on the collegiate level the past five seasons. He was the volunteer assistant coach at Ohio State in 2004, an assistant coach at Cornell University in 2005 and the offensive coordinator at Bucknell the past three seasons. At Bucknell, he was the offensive coordinator, head assistant coach, recruiting coordinator, strength and conditioning supervisor and academic monitor on the Bison staff.

In 2008, Bucknell matched its highest USILA ranking in school history at No. 9 during the course of the season. The Bison finished 10-5 overall and 4-2 in the Patriot League while also reaching the championship game of the conference tournament. In 2007, Bucknell finished 11-4, achieved a mid-year ranking of 11th and a final national rating of 19th. In his first year on the Bucknell staff in 2006, Myers helped lead the Bison to an upset of top-ranked Maryland, the first-ever win in Bucknell history over a No. 1-ranked team. Myers coordinated an offense at Bucknell that produced the past two Patriot League Rookies of the Year - Joe Mele and Austin Winter - and also aided Winter in winning All-America accolades in 2008.

Prior to his stint at Bucknell, Myers was an assistant coach at Cornell in 2005 when the Big Red went 11-3 overall and 6-0 in the Ivy League. Cornell reached the NCAA quarterfinals that season and had its highest regular-season ranking since 1987 when the Big Red reached No. 3 in the nation. The 2005 squad was also the first Big Red team to go undefeated in the Ivy League in 18 years. Myers assisted in coordinating an offense that averaged 12.08 goals per game, ranking No. 3 in the nation in scoring offense.

After playing at Ohio State, Myers spent a season on the staff there as the volunteer assistant coach in 2004. The Buckeyes went 12-4 that season, went 5-0 in the Great Western Lacrosse League to win the league title, earned an NCAA Tournament invitation for the first time in history and achieved the highest ranking in Buckeyes' lacrosse history at No. 6.

Myers played collegiately at OSU from 2000-03. He was the Great Western Lacrosse League's Rookie of the Year in 2000 and a two-time All-GWLL selection in 2002 and 2003. He played in the USILA North-South All-Star Game at the conclusion of the 2003 campaign. In 2005, Myers was one of 120 players selected to try out for Team USA that competed at the 2006 World Games.

Myers was selected by the Boston Cannons of Major League Lacrosse in the supplemental draft in 2004. He played four seasons for the Cannons from 2004-2007. 

Coach Breschi welcomes Assistant Coach Chris Feifs to the Tar Heel Lacrosse Coaching Staff. Chris was hired in August 2009.

Coach Feifs comes to UNC after completing two years as Coach Jeff Shirk's top assistant at Virginia Military Academy in Lexington, Virginia. Chris was the offensive coordinatory at VMI for the 2008 season. In 2008, the Keydets earned their first ever bid to the MAAC Tournament, reaching the tournament championship game. It was the first post-season conference tournament for VMI in 28 years.

Feifs comes to Carolina with the experience of having played in the Atlantic Coast Conference as an undergraduate. Feifs rounded out his playing career at Maryland where he served as the co-captain of the 2007 team.

Feifs was drafted in the 2007 Major League Lacrosse Supplemental Draft when he was taken by the Boston Cannons in the draft's third round. He played for the Cannons under the leadership of Coach Billy Daye, a 1993 UNC graduate.

In May 2007, Feifs received his bachelor's degree in criminal justice from the University of Maryland. He posted a 3.5 grade point average and was a three-time selection to the ACC Academic Honor Roll. Feifs played for Coach Dave Cottle's Terrapins from 2004-07. He played in 35 games in his career. As a senior he started 14 of 15 games for the Terps and had 15 goals and four assists for 19 points. He scored four goals against Yale that season, including the game-winning goal and he also put up three goals against Johns Hopkins. At 6-4, 240, he was an imposing midfield presence for the Terps.

He was the first-ever recruit from the state of North Carolina for Maryland's program as he was from Durham and graduated from Riverside High School in 2004. He was coached by Jim Kirkley at Riverside where he was named a two-time high school All-America.

Brian Holman, a former star lacrosse player at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, was named this past June as the new volunteer assistant coach for the University of North Carolina men's lacrosse program. The appointment was made by new Tar Heel head coach Joe Breschi.

Brian Holman has been involved in lacrosse at all levels for the past 30 years, as player, coach and parent.

Holman attended the Johns Hopkins University and was a member of the Class of 1983. As a player at Hopkins he was a three-time All-America selection as a goalkeeper and he played in four NCAA Championship games in 1980, 1981, 1982 and 1983.

He was a volunteer assistant goalie coach and defensive coordinator at Johns Hopkins for seven years, assistant coach at the Boys' Latin School of Maryland for four years, head coach for five years in the Maryland Youth Lacrosse Association and served three years as current head coach of the Breaker's Club Lacrosse Team in Baltimore, Md.