Dustin Rich will be in his fourth season as head coach of the Drury men's lacrosse program. Rich was named as head coach in 2021 for the team scheduled to launch for the 2022-23 school year.
In the 2024-25 season, the program had its best season, reaching a record of 5-5 and qualifying for the Lone Star Alliance (LSA) Conference Playoffs. The team recorded 204 points with 124 goals and 80 assists, and conceded 117 goals. The team's biggest win was against Saint Louis at home, where Drury won 19-7.
Rich joins the Panthers from Missouri State, where he had guided the Bears club program for six seasons. He led the team to back-to-back conference championships in 2017 and 2018, and a pair of national tournament appearances.
Rich was named Coach of the Year in his conference twice, and during his six years as head coach, compiled a 44-33 record in addition to a stellar 32-12 mark within the conference. Rich's players earned more than 50 all-conference awards, and five were named All-Americans. In 2014, he was named the Ace Adams Sportsmanship Award winner by the National Intercollegiate Lacrosse Officials Association.
Prior to becoming head coach at Missouri State, he served as the program's Defensive Coordinator for three seasons (2010-2012) and helped the Bears to a 23-19 record while holding opponents to just 9.9 goals per game.
A Springfield native, Rich played club lacrosse at Glendale High School before playing collegiately for Missouri State, where he was a team captain for two seasons and a two-time all-conference selection.
In addition to his coaching duties at Missouri State, Rich has coached at the high school club level as well as in the Junior Bears Youth League, and he is a certified high school lacrosse official.
He graduated from Missouri State in 2012 with degrees in Applied Mathematics and Physics.
