Stony Brook women’s college lacrosse head coach Joe Spallina was not happy with the conditions that were presented to his team at Syracuse during the NCAA Tournament on Sunday. He eviscerated the (incompetent) governing body for allowing it to happen and questioned the host school’s inability to provide a better setup.
The six-time America East Coach of the Year, who is also the winningest coach in program history, also made it abundantly clear that the circumstances did not impact the Seawolves’ 15-10 loss to the Orange.
Stony Brook, which defeated Niagra in the First Round to face the No. 3 seed, was forced into a makeshift locker room. Syracuse’s facilities are undergoing a renovation so nothing else was available.
It was a literal tent. Like the ones that you would rent for a graduation party.
The Seawolves were provided one single folding table and a whiteboard. They had three benches— total. Exposed grass, which was mostly mud, made up the “locker room” floor. Players were forced to try and stomp the dirt out of their cleats before they even stepped onto the field for the game.
To say that the temporary facilities were subpar would be an understatement. The tent was not up to the standard that is expected of a D-1 lacrosse program. Certainly not in the postseason!
Stony Brook coach Joe Spallina had quite the postgame presser after his team's loss to Syracuse, including being critical of his team's accommodations in a tent outside the Ensley Center. This video shows what he was not happy about. Space in Ensley is limited due to renovation pic.twitter.com/vQAtGMnDWq
— Brent Axe (@BrentAxeMedia) May 13, 2024
Meanwhile, the Orange got to use its home locker room, inside of the Ensley Center. They had everything for which they were accustomed while their opponents were forced into a tent outside.
College lacrosse icon Joe Spallina was not happy!
The conditions did not go over well with the ever-impassioned Spallina, who voiced his opinion before wrapping his press conference. He prefaced his frustrations by saying that it had “nothing to do with [them] losing.”
I was disappointed with the fact that our team was put in a tent with a mud floor.
It really was not the best situation. It was disappointing.
I think women deserve a better setup for an NCAA Tournament game, a Round of 16 game. These kids played their last game and they couldn’t get changed in the tent that was provided. It was straight mud.
— Joe Spallina
As someone who is not going to mince his words, Spallina rightfully called out the discrepancy between what Stony Brook was provided and what Syracuse was provided. There was a stark contrast.
[Syracuse] was in Ensley and had a nice room. And we were in mud.
I’m not being a sore loser, because if you know, before the game I had a problem with this. I just think when you look at women’s athletics, and the importance of inequality […] that was disappointing to me.
Our players deserved a little bit better of a situation. I know some situations, you can’t control, but we don’t have the facilities they have hear, and I can tell you that Syracuse would not have had a mud floor.
— Joe Spallina
The Seawolves’ college lacrosse coach used the men’s team as an example to make his point. His sons actually play for the Orange’s men’s team. They hosted Towson on Sunday night. Towson did not have a mud floor.
Spallina also compared his team’s “locker room” to the Boardy Barn, a summer institution on Long Island where beer-fueled parties take place under tents.
He also reiterated that he was not being sour.
If I’m not fighting for our kids, then who is?
— Joe Spallina
In addition to his entirely justified postgame rant, Joe Spallina addressed the issue with the NCAA prior to the game. His full comments can be heard here: