GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Anthony Mackin has been named the associate head coach of the Tusculum College men's lacrosse team announced Pioneer head coach and director of lacrosse Richard Carrington.

Men's lacrosse will start as the College's 15th intercollegiate sport during 2013-2014 academic year with competition starting in the spring of 2014. Tusculum will compete in men's lacrosse at the NCAA Division II level and as a member of the South Atlantic Conference.

Mackin, native of Springfield, Va., just completed his third season on the coaching staff at the Virginia Military Institute. While at the NCAA Division I program, he assisted with the team's faceoff unit, recruiting, and day-to-day office activities, as well as added responsibilities on defense.

Mackin played an instrumental role in the continued emergence of faceoff specialist Stephen Robarge in his first year at VMI, as was named the NCAA national statistical champion in faceoffs as well as groundballs, becoming only the second player in NCAA history to win both the faceoff and ground ball categories. Robarge's 10.15 groundballs per contest in 2011 ranks No. 8 in NCAA history and is the highest ground ball per game average in Division I lacrosse since 2006.

"Coach Mackin is one of the premiere faceoff coaches in the country and Tusculum Lacrosse is extremely fortunate to have him join our staff as associate head coach," said Carrington. "At Tusculum, we look to recruit tough-minded and driven people, and Coach Mackin excels in finding student-athletes with those attributes. More importantly, he is one of the great young teachers in our profession, and our program will benefit greatly from Coach Mackin's innate ability to connect with today's student-athlete."

While at the Lexington, Va. school, Mackin mentored former Keydet Chris Rossie in a faceoff wing position, as VMI had the only duo ranked in the top-25 nationally in groundballs. As a team, VMI was second in the nation in faceoffs.

There was no drop off on the faceoff unit from Mackin's first season at VMI to his second. Robarge once again claimed the top groundballs per game (9.07) title and faceoff percentage (66.6). The Keydets also finished tops among the nation's 61 Division I teams in faceoff winning percentage, claiming draws at a 64.4 percent clip. Robarge became the first Division I player to win back-to-back groundball titles in 2012.

A defenseman in college, Mackin also helped revamp the Keydet close defense in 2012, instituting a defense that allowed the fewest goals in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) play since 2009. The defense was crucial in several games, holding opponents under 10 goals in three of the last four games, helping VMI win those three contests. One of the defense's shining moments of 2012 came in a 6-2 setback against 16th ranked Lehigh, which went on to a No. 7 ranking and a spot in the NCAA tournament. Mackin's responsibilities helped lead to a pair of second-team All-MAAC selections in defenseman Kyle Hofstetter and Robarge, who was also named MAAC Faceoff Specialist of the Year for a second season.

One of the talented young defensemen under Mackin's instruction was Tyler Prasnicki, who made great strides between his freshman and sophomore seasons (2012-13). Prasnicki finished the 2013 season with 26 caused turnovers, becoming the first Keydet to surpass the 20-caused turnover mark in a single season since the statistic became official in 2010. Prasnicki was also one of the best in the country during 2013, ranking fifth in caused turnovers per game (2.36) and he was the highest-ranked sophomore in the nation.

In addition to his duties with the varsity team, Mackin was the head coach of VMI's club lacrosse team as well. In two seasons as the head man, Mackin led the squad to back-to-back title games in the National Club Lacrosse League's Blue Ridge-Tidewater Conference. In 2013, Mackin's club squad claimed the league title, earning a berth in the NCLL national tournament, where the team reached the final four.

Mackin joined the Keydets after a year as a graduate assistant coach at Marymount University in Arlington, Va., earning a master's in secondary education. He is a 2008 graduate of Lycoming College in Williamsport, Pa., where he served as a team captain his senior year, his season was cut short after suffering a career-ending knee injury.

Following the injury, Mackin took on a role as an assistant coach, where he headed the man-down defense and assisted with team conditioning and scouting. During his student-teaching responsibilities at Marymount in the spring of 2009, he also served as an assistant coach at Hayfield Secondary School, which produced Robarge, who was drafted by Major League Lacrosse's Denver Outlaws. Robarge was picked up 44th overall by one of the League's top teams, and was named the MLL Rookie of the Week after his first game with the Outlaws, who eventually reached the League's Championship game.

Mackin is married to the former Terese Flores of Virginia Beach, Va.

Tusculum College, located in Greeneville, Tenn., is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church, USA and is a NCAA Division II member of the South Atlantic Conference. Tusculum, the oldest college in the State of Tennessee, sponsors 15 intercollegiate sports.

Tusculum, the 28th oldest college in the nation, is a liberal arts institution committed to providing a liberal arts education in a Judeo-Christian and civic arts environment, with pathways for career preparation, personal development and civic engagement. Approximately twenty-one hundred students are enrolled on the main campus in Greeneville and three off-site locations in East Tennessee. The academic programs for both traditional-aged students and working adults served through the Graduate and Professional Studies program are delivered using focused calendars whereby students enroll in one course at a time.

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