Updated 5/7/08

Kim Ciarrocca, who led Temple University to national prominence over 12 seasons, was named head coach of the women's lacrosse program at the University of Delaware July 1, 2004. Ciarrocca (pronounced shuh-rock-uh) became just the fifth head coach in the history of women's lacrosse at Delaware.

After four straight losing seasons and no trips to the Colonial Athletic Association tournament over the previous three campaigns, Ciarrocca wasted little time in guiding the Blue Hens back into the national spotlight in 2005.

Delaware posted an 8-8 overall record during Ciarrocca's first season at the helm, but more importantly the Hens recorded a 4-3 mark in CAA play, good for a fourth place finish and a spot in the CAA Tournament for the first time since rejoining the league in 2002. The Hens fell to No. 1 seed Hofstra in the opening round, but a young squad gained plenty of experience and confidence for the coming years.

In addition to the post-season berth, the Hens returned to the national Top 20 rankings for the first time since the 2005 season. The Hens appeared in the Top 20 nine times in 11 weeks, including a season best ranking of No. 15 on March 28. The Hens defeated three Top 20 opponents during the season.

After a 5-12 mark in the 2006 season, the Blue Hens bounced back in a big way in 2007. The Blue Hens went 11-6 overall and finished tied for second in the CAA at 5-2. The Hens were ranked in the IWLCA Top 20 poll for three consecutive weeks and completed a perfect 9-0 record at home. Delaware fell to James Madison in the CAA semifinals, but return four of their top five leading scorers coming into the 2008 season.

The Blue Hens posted another 11-6 record in 2008 and placed fourth in the CAA standings with a 4-3 mark. Delaware battled tough but fell to host William & Mary 15-14 in the semifinals, just missing out on a trip to the league title game for the first time since the 1999 season. The Hens also extended their home winning streak to 15 games before falling to George Mason on Apr. 13. In addition, the Hens received votes in both the IWLCA and Nike/Inside Lacrosse polls during the season.

Ciarrocca's four-year record at Delaware now stands at 35-32, ranking her third on the UD all-time women's lacrosse coaching win list.

"We are excited to have Kim Ciarrocca lead our women's lacrosse program here at the University of Delaware," said Delaware Director of Athletics Edgar Johnson in making the announcement. "We have known about Kim and her great success at Temple for a long time and we really believe she is one of the top women's lacrosse coaches in the entire country. She brings with her impressive credentials and a great committment to her players and the sport of women's lacrosse. We are extremely fortunate to have her join our coaching staff."

Ciarrocca, who is the wife of former University of Delaware football offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca, has enjoyed outstanding success during her 17-year career as a college head coach, leading squads at Ursinus College (1990), Muhlenberg (1991), Randolph-Macon Woman's College (1992), and Temple (1993-2004). Her overall head coaching record stands at 193-123, including a mark of 133-77 at Temple.

While at Temple, Ciarrocca's squads dominated the Atlantic 10 Conference, winning six straight league regular season titles between 1999-2004 and advancing to the NCAA Tournament seven times in her last nine years. Her teams advanced to the NCAA tournament three straight seasons in 1996, 1997, and 1998 with the 1997 squad posting a 14-3 record and competing in the NCAA semifinals. She coached more than 20 All-Americans, was named Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year in 2001, and Mid-Atlantic Coach of the Year in 1997.

During the 2004 season, the Owls posted a record of 11-8 and captured the Atlantic 10 Tournament title with a 12-11 overtime win over Duquesne in the title game. For the second straight year, Temple fell to Maryland in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Among Temple's losses during the 2004 season was a 11-10 setback to Delaware on April 21.

Ciarrocca began her head coaching career at Ursinus College in Collegeville, PA where she led the Bears to a 14-3 record and the NCAA Division III national title with 7-6 win over St. Lawrence in her only season in 1990. She was named the Pennsylvania Association for Intercollegiate Athletics Women's Coach of the Year for her efforts and her team was later honored by President George Bush at the White House for its accomplishment.

In 1990-91 she served as head coach for women's lacrosse and field hockey and was a physical education instructor at NCAA Division III Randolph-Macon College in Allentown, PA for one season. She led the lacrosse team to a 6-6 record in her only season in 1991.

She moved on to Muhlenberg Woman's College the following year and served for one year as head coach for field hockey and lacrosse, director of intramural programs, and as an assistant professor of physical education in 1991-92. She led the lacrosse squad to a 5-5 mark and a berth in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference tournament in 1992.

A native of Conshohocken, PA, the former Kim Lambdin was a standout at Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School and followed with an outstanding two-sport career at Temple. As a goalkeeper and co-captain in field hockey, she was a two-time All-American in 1986 and 1987 and established school record for career saves (751) and shutouts (28). In lacrosse, she led Temple to a four-year record of 83-7 in 1984-88 with the 1988 squad capturing the NCAA national title.

She was a two-time lacrosse All-American in 1987 and 1988 and ranks seventh on Temple's all-time scoring list with 207 points on 162 goals and 45 assists. She was inducted into the Temple University Athletics Hall of Fame in 2000 and the Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School Hall of Fame in 2004. In addition, she was a member of the U.S. National Lacrosse Team in 1988-92 and led the 1989 squad to the World Championship.

She earned her bachelor's degree in health and physical education from Temple in 1988 and her master's degree in sports administration from Temple in 1992. She is a member of the United States Women's Lacrosse Association and the International Women's Lacrosse Association and has served on numerous USWLA committees.

She and Kirk have two childen, daughter Colby (12) and son Cade (7), and reside in Hockessin, DE. Kirk served on head coach K.C. Keeler's Blue Hen football staff for six seasons as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach and helped lead Delaware to the 2003 NCAA I-AA national title and to the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision title game in 2007. Delaware teams went 52-26 and won two league titles during his tenure. He now serves as wide receivers coach at Rutgers University.