When Rob Siris took the men’s lacrosse job at Mercer County College everyone was aware of his success as coach at Hopewell Valley High.
During his six years at Mercer, Siris did much more than coach lacrosse, he built the program from the ground up into a championship program.
But, now it’s time to take a moment or two for himself and his family as he begins a new chapter stepping down from the job with the Vikings.
“It was a great challenge developing a new culture and structure at Mercer,’’ said Siris. “The athletic department was very supportive and I can’t thank John Simone (Mercer Athletic Director) enough for his support. One reason I knew this could be successful was the fact that Mercer had one of the most experienced leaders in John Simone. We now have a nationally recognized, well respected men’s lacrosse program at Mercer.’’
After two years of setting the groundwork, the Vikings took the field in 2019, Covid dampened the 2020 season but this season Mercer capped off the spring with another Region 19 title.
Siris led the Vikings to 25 wins in four years, a pair of Region titles and an appearance on the National Tournament in 2019.
“Rob Siris was the perfect hire,’’ said former Mercer AD John Simone. “He helped me start the program, he developed the program and laid out what we’ve needed year-by-year and we won to Region championship.’’
During his four seasons at Mercer, Siris coached 18 All-Region 19 performers, two Region 19 Players of the Year, two Region 19 Offensive Players of the Year, one Region 19 Defensive Player of the Year and one NJCAA All-American.
“It was an incredible experience building something from the ground up,’’ said Siris. “I was really passionate about helping to grow lacrosse in Mercer County when the opportunity came up in 2017. The best part was helping so many young men continue playing lacrosse after high school and many of them went on to play at the NCAA level after Mercer.’’
A professed lacrosse junkie, Siris was an All-Conference player at Drew University, he has been heavily involved in US Lacrosse and while on the sidelines at Hopewell Valley he earned 162 wins, five Colonial Valley Conference championships, two Mercer County Tournament titles and he was named the CVC Coach of the Year four times.
One of the special moments he’ll add to the list is the Region championship this season with Mercer’s 12-8 win over Sussex.
“Our Region championship was a great way to end our 2023 season,’’ said Siris. “We had a few injuries this season, but we also had a several other players step up into different roles.’’
Now, Siris is ready to step into a new role, as well.
“I might explore coaching locally in a less time-consuming capacity,’’ Siris stated. “I’ve been a head coach for the past 20 years and it’s been difficult at times to devote the same amount of time to my team as well as my family at home. I’m excited to be able to watch more of my daughters lacrosse games.’’
