After a disappointing 6-11 season, Virginia Tech women’s lacrosse head coach Katrina Silva resigned last week to pursue a business opportunity outside of coaching.
Tech announced that assistant coach Megan Burker will take over the reigns, serving as the team’s interim head coach for the 2010-11 academic year.
“We thank Katrina for her dedication to Virginia Tech and wish her well in the future,” said Jim Weaver, director of athletics, in a statement made July 23.
In her four seasons as the head coach of the Hokies, Silva posted an overall record of 22-37. In that time, Tech never posted a winning record and never advanced past its first game at the Atlantic Coast Conference Championships.
In fact, during her time at Tech, Silva’s teams posted just one win against ACC opponents.
Since joining the conference in 2005, the Hokies have underachieved and failed to improve much at all. However, the team’s new leader believes she can reverse its fortune in her new role.
“I’m really excited about this opportunity,” Burker said. “I’ve worked at Virginia Tech for four years now as an assistant coach, I’ve been involved in a lot of the changes we’ve made so far and you know, I’m just excited to have a new leadership position and coach this team to the next level.”
A native of Baltimore, Md., Burker came to Tech after a standout athletic career at Stanford University. As a four-time Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament All-Star and a four-time MPSF selection, she finished her career ranked in the top-10 in every career chart.
Her resume includes being named to the U.S. National Teams program at the completion of her junior season, handling captain duties for the US Developmental Squad and receiving Stanford’s team MVP honors in 2005 and 2006.
She says her experience at every level of the game will help her lead the Hokies.
“I’ve really had great leaders throughout my lacrosse career,” Burker said. “Even starting at high school… in college, I had some great mentors and coaches. Then, playing at the US level, obviously, gave me the competition where I really played against the best in the country. I understood what it took to get to be the best.”
Despite being just four years removed from college, Burker believes she’s ready for the opportunity.
“I think being able to have a lot of leadership experience has prepped me to be able to take over at a young age. I’m excited for it and we’re ready to go. We’re already planning for this fall and this spring, and we’re excited for the team to come back and become a part of that and see what happens this year.”
Burker doesn’t think the team’s record as of late is indicative of what her team is.
“I’ve seen a lot of good things happen here and I see a lot of opportunity over the next few years,” she said.
“I think our team culture is just at such an exciting place right now… Obviously there are a few more changes happening than we planned on, but just trying to take that excitement and think of the possibility that this year brings. We have an athletic team, we have a few veterans in place now, and I think we’re really excited about the course that this year brings and the possibility we have for this season.”
With many of its starters entering their junior season, Tech does look much more dangerous than it has in years. Its top 10 scorers look to return in 2011 and after a tough few seasons, the team is poised for its best season in years. With many of its leaders entering their final season, a winning season is on everyone’s minds, including Burker’s.
“I want to bring a winning season to Virginia Tech,” the team’s new coach said. “I think that’s what it
deserves. You know, I think being in the ACC has its obvious challenges — challenges that we’ve looked to address and faced over the past few years.”
“I think the first step is making this team win, experiencing that and giving them the confidence they need to keep progressing toward bigger goals. I think that’s where it’s all going to start.”