Cathy Reese Receives Inaugural ISNation Lead With Love Award
5/6/2026 10:45:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
COLLEGE PARK, MD -- ISNation officially announced on Wednesday morning that Navy head coach Cindy Timchal and Maryland head coach Cathy Reese were the inaugural recipients of the organization's Lead With Love Award. The Lead With Love Award is ISNation's highest honor – given to leaders who build champions through trust, discipline, and a commitment to the whole person. The inaugural award is shared between Timchal and Reese, recognizing that their impact to college women's lacrosse cannot be separated.
Why These Two Coaches – Together (from ISNation)
Cathy Reese arrived at the University of Maryland in 1995 as a player under Cindy Timchal, and together they won four national championships. Cathy was shaped by a standard, set by Cindy, that she would carry with her for the rest of her career. Cathy stayed on as Cindy's assistant for five more years before eventually taking over the same program – and building one of the most decorated dynasties the sport has ever seen.
What Cindy gave Cathy was not a playbook. It was a belief: that the athletes in your care are people before they are players, that love and high standards are not opposites, and that the greatest legacy a coach can leave is not found in the win column but in the lives that were changed along the way. Cathy has honored that belief in everything she has built. Her own players speak of her the way she speaks of Cindy – as the coach who taught them how to live, not just how to play. Many have gone on to coach with that same standard, passing forward what was given to them. The chain of love that Cindy started has never broken.
The 2026 Lead With Love Inaugural Class honors both women together because this is precisely what the award exists to celebrate – not individual excellence, but the quiet, enduring power of love passed from one person to the next, and the next, and the next.
Reese, who has led the women's lacrosse program since 2007, has built Maryland into one of the premier programs in collegiate lacrosse. She now has a career record of 354-53 (.870) at Maryland and has the highest winning percentage of any current Maryland head coach.
Over the course of her distinguished career as a student-athlete, assistant coach, and head coach at the University of Maryland, Cathy Reese has amassed an impressive 12 NCAA Championships. She ranks seventh all-time among women's lacrosse head coaches with 384 career wins, achieving milestones as the fastest coach to reach 200, 250, and 300 wins. Reese has guided Maryland to five national championships (2010, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2019), 11 Final Fours, and 20 regular-season and tournament championships across the ACC and Big Ten. She is recognized as a four-time IWLCA National Coach of the Year (2010, 2014, 2015, 2019) and a 12-time conference coach of the year. With a career winning percentage of .824, Reese has developed eight Tewaaraton Trophy winners, 24 National Players of the Year, and 78 All-Americans.
Her legacy has earned her numerous inductions, most recently being inducted into the 2025 IWLCA Hall of Fame and also into the Maryland Athletics Hall of Fame, DC Sports Hall of Fame, Howard County (Md.) Women's Athletic Hall of Fame, and several USA Lacrosse Halls of Fame, culminating in her induction into the USA Lacrosse National Hall of Fame in 2019.
Maryland women's lacrosse earns its 36th straight bid to the NCAA Tournament, as announced on Sunday night. Maryland earned the third seed and will host the first and second rounds at SECU Stadium in College Park.
About ISNation
Why These Two Coaches – Together (from ISNation)
Cathy Reese arrived at the University of Maryland in 1995 as a player under Cindy Timchal, and together they won four national championships. Cathy was shaped by a standard, set by Cindy, that she would carry with her for the rest of her career. Cathy stayed on as Cindy's assistant for five more years before eventually taking over the same program – and building one of the most decorated dynasties the sport has ever seen.
What Cindy gave Cathy was not a playbook. It was a belief: that the athletes in your care are people before they are players, that love and high standards are not opposites, and that the greatest legacy a coach can leave is not found in the win column but in the lives that were changed along the way. Cathy has honored that belief in everything she has built. Her own players speak of her the way she speaks of Cindy – as the coach who taught them how to live, not just how to play. Many have gone on to coach with that same standard, passing forward what was given to them. The chain of love that Cindy started has never broken.
The 2026 Lead With Love Inaugural Class honors both women together because this is precisely what the award exists to celebrate – not individual excellence, but the quiet, enduring power of love passed from one person to the next, and the next, and the next.
Reese, who has led the women's lacrosse program since 2007, has built Maryland into one of the premier programs in collegiate lacrosse. She now has a career record of 354-53 (.870) at Maryland and has the highest winning percentage of any current Maryland head coach.
Over the course of her distinguished career as a student-athlete, assistant coach, and head coach at the University of Maryland, Cathy Reese has amassed an impressive 12 NCAA Championships. She ranks seventh all-time among women's lacrosse head coaches with 384 career wins, achieving milestones as the fastest coach to reach 200, 250, and 300 wins. Reese has guided Maryland to five national championships (2010, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2019), 11 Final Fours, and 20 regular-season and tournament championships across the ACC and Big Ten. She is recognized as a four-time IWLCA National Coach of the Year (2010, 2014, 2015, 2019) and a 12-time conference coach of the year. With a career winning percentage of .824, Reese has developed eight Tewaaraton Trophy winners, 24 National Players of the Year, and 78 All-Americans.
Her legacy has earned her numerous inductions, most recently being inducted into the 2025 IWLCA Hall of Fame and also into the Maryland Athletics Hall of Fame, DC Sports Hall of Fame, Howard County (Md.) Women's Athletic Hall of Fame, and several USA Lacrosse Halls of Fame, culminating in her induction into the USA Lacrosse National Hall of Fame in 2019.
Maryland women's lacrosse earns its 36th straight bid to the NCAA Tournament, as announced on Sunday night. Maryland earned the third seed and will host the first and second rounds at SECU Stadium in College Park.
About ISNation
Inspired by her daughter'; experiences in lacrosse, founder Tracey Currey created ISNation to fill a critical gap in sports – offering a holistic platform that supports athletes, coaches, and parents both on and off the field. Guided by faith, service, and a commitment to meaningful connection, Currey is redefining the sports landscape by building a community where development, relationships, and long-term success come first. ISNation's mission is to change sports by building a community where athletes are seen, supported, and strengthened – on and off the field.
Additionally, ISNation looks to create a new standard for athlete development – one that integrates mind, body, and spirit – where connection, daily habits, and relationships drive performance and lifelong growth.
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