Preston Chapman

Following a 21-year career as the longest-tenured head coach in the history of the Elmira College men's lacrosse program, Preston Chapman was named the College's Director of Athletic Events and Operations and the Murray Athletic Center Manager in October of 2018.

Chapman served as head coach of the men's lacrosse team from 1990-1998 and returned to EC in the same capacity from 2006-18. He is the winningest coach in Elmira College history and has coached some of the greatest players to suit up for the Soaring Eagles throughout the years, including seven of the Top-10 scorers in program history.

In his second go-round with the Purple and Gold, Chapman has overseen the development of two of EC’s top-five all-time leading scorers. David Evert ’14 not only graduated third all-time in points with 168, but he set a new career mark for assists with 92, surpassing Brad Levick ’10 by a single point. Of Levick’s 167 points, 123 of them were goals, making him the third-highest goal scorer in Elmira history.

In his first stint with the Soaring Eagles, Chapman turned Elmira into one of the most competitive Division III teams in Upstate New York. He coached 21 All-Empire Lacrosse League selections and was named Empire Lacrosse League Coach of the Year twice in 1995 and 1996. Chapman also had two players selected to play in the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) North-South All-Star game.

Chapman returned to Elmira in 2005 to find the college enrolled in a new athletic conference with much stiffer lacrosse competition, the Empire 8 Conference. He has had eight players garner Empire 8 All-Conference honors since his return, most recently Honorable Mention defenseman AJ Bourdon '16, and one USILA North-South All-Star Game representative.

Speaking of defense, Chapman oversaw the growth of one of the program's best goaltenders in recent memory in Cameron Prior '17. In a late-season start in 2015, Prior established a new single-game record for saves with 38. Then in 2016, Prior's first as a full-time starter, the 6-foot-5 netminder led the E8 and ranked seventh in the country with 17.15 saves per game. He finished the year with 223 saves, the most by an EC goalie in over 14 years. Prior's impressive run continued in the 2017 season, as he finished fifth in the country in saves per game average (16.91) and he scored his first collegiate goal.

Chapman, a 1989 graduate of Alfred University, coached at his alma mater after leaving EC in 1998. He served on the Division III All-America selection committee and was chosen to coach the North Team in the 2003 North-South Division III All-Star game, which was played at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut.

Chapman resides in Elmira, New York, with his son Jack, a former all-state football player and all-league lacrosse standout at nearby Notre Dame High School.