Coach Speak: Acacia Walker-Weinstein
In 2024, Boston College lacrosse appeared in its seventh-straight NCAA championship game and claimed its second title, along with its second ACC championship. Here, Head Coach Acacia Walker-Weinstein talks about the program’s emergence, the players she recruits, and where she’s set her sights.
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Since you took the reins in 2013, BC lacrosse has experienced an incredible run of success. What are you most proud of?
The truth is the girls own this team, not me. A player-led team is every coach’s dream; the coaches can strive to move forward, while the leadership and culture are carried over by the squad. I think that’s what I’m most proud of—we’re not dragging these girls along, they’re carrying the team and sustaining success, year in and year out.
What’s the identity of Boston College lacrosse?
What makes BC lacrosse special is the kind of kid who comes here. We recruit type A competitors who are never content: unselfish, high-motor, hard-working. We ask a lot of our girls, and you wouldn’t believe what they sacrifice—of their social lives, the chance for an ordinary college experience—to try and win a national championship.
They want to win, but they also want to crush in the classroom, have a hand in the community, and serve alongside their teammates. They also want to have fun. And when you have a whole team of well-rounded, balanced kids like that, good things happen.
People just began to trust that the program was going somewhere, and they wanted to get behind us. ”
—Acacia Walker-Weinstein
How have you seen donor support impact the program?
There’s been stages to it. As we started winning more and capturing the BC community’s attention, people just began to trust that the program was going somewhere, and they wanted to get behind us.
Early on, I knew if we were going to get anywhere, we needed a better locker room to retain and attract top talent. A generous donation from someone in our BC family allowed us to transform it. The most significant step was when a donor enabled us to pay our staff: we got [Associate Head Coach Jennifer Kent] into a full-time, paid position, and increased the pay of our second assistant [coach]. That really cemented our place as a legit program in the ACC.
Early on, I knew we needed a better locker room to retain and attract top talent. A generous donation from someone in our BC family allowed us to transform it. From there, the next most significant step was when a donor enabled us to better pay my staff. That really cemented our place as a legit program in the ACC.
Without the donations of the people around the country, and frankly, internationally, we wouldn’t be able to win championships.
How do you keep the squad hungry after achieving so much?
These girls are deeply, intrinsically motivated. Singular moments of success are not what these girls are seeking. They want long-term success, consistent success, and they’re always looking for more—like me. As long as there’s still more out there for us, we’re coming for it.
“It was our first NCAA Final Four, playing Naval Academy at Gillette Stadium, and we were absolutely underdogs,” says Coach Walker-Weinstein. “I wanted our girls to look up in the stands and see their families and friends—for connection and support—and I wanted something that said ‘we’re not afraid to be here.’
“So we bought about 500 neon shirts and gave them out to all of the families. Turns out some of the families also bought a few hundred shirts; before we knew it, there were thousands of people in neon yellow in the stands. The game was tight, but when the girls looked up, they saw everyone cheering them on.”
That night, BC edged out a 16–15 victory, advancing to the final. Since then, neon yellow has become a staple of BC lacrosse, unapologetic and loud in the stands at every game.
