BOULDER — University of Colorado lacrosse coach Ann Elliott Whidden has announced the additions of Nicole Levy and Carly Cox to her staff. Levy will serve as an assistant coach, while Cox will be the Director for Player Development.
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"The addition of Carly and Nicole is exciting for me," Whidden said. "I think we have one of the most dynamic and creative staffs in the country and I am really looking forward to us all working together this year to help take our program to that next level!"
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Nicole Levy
Levy joins the CU staff after finishing up her four-year collegiate career at Syracuse. She recorded 81 assists in that time, which is eighth in Syracuse history. She also finished her career 10th on the school's all-time points chart with 222, and was just the 10th player in program history to reach 200 career points. Levy was named to the Tewaaraton Watch List three times, earned all-region honors four times (twice on the first team and twice on the second team) and was selected to the All-ACC second team as a senior.
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In 2019, she started in all 21 games for the Orange and totaled 29 goals and 27 assists for 56 points. Levy ranked second on the team as a junior with 51 points and 41 goals, and as a sophomore, she totaled 25 goals and 22 assists for 47 points.
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In her freshman campaign, she racked up the awards. Levy was named the Lacrosse Magazine Rookie of the Year, the ACC and ECAC Rookie of the Year, was an Inside Lacrosse All-Rookie Team honoree and was selected to the NCAA All-Tournament team. She tied for third on the team in scoring with 68 points and finished third in both goals (46) and assists (22) while starting in 18 of 25 games played.
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"My grandfather always told me that, 'success is waking up excited to go to work.' I can proudly say I have never been this excited to go to work with such an incredible team and staff," Levy said. "I can't wait to start working to help this program reach a new level of success!"
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 "I am very excited to add Nicole to our staff," Whidden said. "Nicole is coming off an outstanding career at Syracuse. She has a great offensive mind and understanding of the game. While she will be new to college coaching, she has tremendous experience in coaching from her involvement with camps, clinics and coaching club. Nicole has a great ability to teach by breaking down skills. She will play a key role in our players' skill development, developing our offense and recruiting with her strong connections on the east coast. I am really looking forward to seeing all we can do together."
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Cox is no stranger to CU as she played four seasons for the Buffs (2015-18) and spent the 2019 campaign on the sidelines as the graduate assistant coach. A starter in 74 of 76 games played, Cox recorded 92 goals, 63 assists, 60 ground balls and 14 caused turnovers. She recorded 44 points her junior and senior campaigns, with a career-high 32 goals in 2018. Of the attacker's 59 shots her senior year, 47 were on goal for a .797 shots on goal percentage. As a junior, she recorded 27 goals and 17 assists.
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Carly Cox
Over the course of her four seasons with the Buffs, she helped the team record a 54-22 (.711), which included an impressive 28-5 mark in Boulder. The Buffs were a perfect 8-0 during her junior season and compiled a 7-0 mark her senior year. Throughout three seasons, the Buffs recorded 19 consecutive wins in Boulder, which tied the fifth longest streak in NCAA history. Â
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During Cox's senior season, the Buffs won the inaugural regular season Pac12 Championship, finishing with a 9-1 mark. The Buffs also advanced to their second straight NCAA Tournament and won their first NCAA Tournament with a 23-18 win against Jacksonville.
"I can't thank Ann enough for giving me this opportunity," Cox said. "This program is so special to me and it means so much to be able to come back and work with the student-athletes and this incredible coaching staff again. I'm so excited to work with our student-athletes and help them develop skill sets that can benefit them both on and off the field."
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"I could not be more excited to have Carly back with us for another year," Whidden said. "Carly has given so much to our program as a player and last year as a graduate assistant. She is a tremendous role model and leader, and as director for player development, she will have a large role in helping our players develop and grow off the field in all areas. Carly will also assist our staff in our general daily coaching responsibilities off the field. She is an extremely hard worker and bright mind. I am really looking forward to the added value she will bring daily to our staff and players in this role."
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