NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – Merrimack College has named a pair of alumni, Brian Murphy '03 and Jen Fox Sargent '09, as head coaches of the baseball and women's lacrosse programs respectively, as announced by Director of Athletics,
Jeremy Gibson.
It's a homecoming for both Massachusetts natives, as they both paved great careers as student-athletes during their time as collegiate athletes. Murphy returns to Merrimack after he spent the past eight seasons at the helm at William & Mary, while Fox Sargent comes back to North Andover after she led Roger Williams for the past four campaigns.
"We are thrilled to welcome Jen and Brian back to campus," Gibson said. "Since leaving North Andover, they both excelled as coaches and educators at various schools. The passion and enthusiasm they have for their alma mater is contagious and to have two alumni return as head coaches is truly special and exciting for our student athletes and the entire Merrimack community."
Murphy—who becomes the seventh head coach in baseball program history—returns home to North Andover after he had four 30-win seasons with the Tribe, five CAA-Tournament appearances and its first NCAA Tournament at-large bid.
Murphy was recognized as CAA Coach of the Year in 2014 after winning 34 games in his first year at the helm for the Tribe. In 2016, Murphy was named VASID Coach of the Year after a CAA Tournament Championship and NCAA Regional Final Appearance. William & Mary turned four 30+ win seasons under Murphy's tutelage. Nine players who have competed for Murphy's teams have been taken in the MLB Draft, with two players taken in the first five rounds.
"I am very grateful for the opportunity to return to Merrimack and thankful to
Jeremy Gibson and the entire administration for allowing me to do so," Murphy said. "Merrimack is a special place to my family and I. I look forward to creating a great baseball experience for current and future student-athletes and we expect to have a baseball program that the campus will be proud of!"
Programs under the Easton, Mass. native have also seen outstanding academic achievement in addition to the team's on-field success. William & Mary teams earned three-straight Team Academic Awards by the ABCA, with three student athletes recognized as CoSIDA Academic-All Americans and a CAA Scholar Athlete of the Year.
Prior to his tenure in Williamsburg, Va., Murphy served as Recruiting Coordinator and Hitting Coach for the Brown University Bears, with ten student-athletes earning All-Ivy League Selections in his three years on the staff.
A 2003 graduate and former team captain, Murphy went on to earn Master's Degree in Sports Management from California University of Pennsylvania in 2009. He returns to North Andover with his wife, Karen, son Connor and daughter Maggie.
Fox Sargent '09 returns to North Andover to take over the Warriors' women's lacrosse program after she was the head coach at Roger Williams University for the past four seasons.
The Braintree, Mass. native was a dominant force on the defensive end of the field during her playing days at Merrimack and was a two-time team captain. She also served as the Vice President of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) while she was a student.
She immediately got involved in the coaching world after graduation with a stop at Simmons College as an assistant coach for one season, then had similar roles at Randolph-Macon College and Saint Francis before she returned to Merrimack in 2014 as an assistant coach. She spent one season at her alma mater, then took an assistant role at Endicott for a year and won a Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) championship leading into her hire at Roger Williams in 2017.
"Merrimack College is a place near and dear to my heart and I credit the institution and specifically the women's lacrosse program for playing an immense role in shaping me into the person and coach I am today," said Fox Sargent. "I am genuinely humbled and elated for the opportunity to return to Merrimack to give back to the program that gave me so much. "I would like to offer my deep gratitude to
Jeremy Gibson and
Diane Metcalf for allowing me this unique opportunity. I have always been proud to be a member of the Merrimack community and I am incredibly eager to get started as the new head women's lacrosse coach. I plan to teach, mentor and equip these incredible young women and hopefully make our alumni proud! An excited road lies ahead. Go Mack!"
While the head coach of the Hawks, Fox Sargent has thrust the program into a dominant force in the Commonwealth Coast Conference. She compiled an impressive 34-13 record while at the helm, which culminated this past spring with a CCC Championship and a trip to the third round in the NCAA tournament that included Roger Williams' first ever win in NCAA postseason play.
Fox Sargent was tabbed the CCC Coach of the Year in 2021 for the third time and had seven of her players earn All-CCC honors, including the Rookie of the Year and Scholar-Athlete of the Year. She also had one of her players named an IWLCA All-American for the first time in program history.
Since 2013, Fox Sargent has also served as the head coach of the Boston Laxachusetts Girls Lacrosse club for players aged elementary school through high school. With that role, she's provided coaching for the highly competitive club team, but has also provided support for student-athletes in the college recruiting process.
Murphy and Fox Sargent join men's lacrosse head coach
Mike Morgan '00 and men's basketball head coach
Joe Gallo '04 as returnees to their former Merrimack programs as head coaches.
