LOWELL, Mass. – UMass Lowell women's lacrosse head coach Lisa Miller has announced the promotion of James Rippey to Associate Head Coach ahead of the 2026 season.

"James has worked tirelessly to improve the program," said Miller. "His commitment and passion for competition and education rubs off on the players, and they will be excited by the announcement. He has also made quite a name for himself on the recruiting circuit with club coaches, college coaches, and the parent groups who watch the sidelines carefully. I am appreciative of his hard work, his ability to develop talent, defensive schemes, and the occasional well-timed humor. This is an earned and deserved promotion, and I look forward to the future. Go River Hawks!"

Since joining UMass Lowell in 2021, Rippey has helped build up the program, leading the River Hawks to both their first-ever conference playoff berth as well as their first America East regular season championship. Overseeing the defense, the River Hawks posted their best defensive season in program history during the 2024 season, allowing only 10.22 goals per game to rank second in the America East and 30^th in the country. During his time, he has also seen a plethora of players earn conference awards, including Julia Napolitano earning America East First Team honors in 2024, Daia Hansford and Elsa Skinner earning All-Conference Second Team spots, while Madison Carter and Awa Dembele were named to the All-Rookie Team last year.

Prior to his time at UMass Lowell, Rippey began his collegiate lacrosse coaching career as head coach at Framingham State, where he spent nine years building the program up to one of the best teams in the MASCAC. Although the team only posted two conference wins in his first two seasons at the helm, they improved rapidly, posting a .500 record or better in his final seven years, including going 16-3 in 2018 and 15-4 in 2019, alongside a perfect, 7-0 conference record.

Rippey, a graduate of Boston College with degrees in mathematics and history, obtained a master's degree in teaching from Northeastern University in 2021.