NORTHBOROUGH, MA – The Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) announced on September 5 the expansion of its Aspire Program, a professional development initiative designed to support the IWLCA’s vision and provide an intensive, high-quality continuing education opportunity for current assistant coaches.
 
Originally limited to 17 spots for the inaugural Aspire class, the IWLCA has expanded the number of participants for 2025-26 to include two cohorts of 15 coaches each. Among the 30 coaches selected to be a part of the program this year were Denison's Tori Vernau and John Carroll’s Marlo Peck.
 
“We’re so pleased the Board approved funding for the expansion of the Aspire program for this year, allowing us to serve a greater number of total coaches in the two cohorts,” said IWLCA Director of Internal Operations and Programming, Danie Caro. “Last year’s program was very successful, and our hope is that strategically scaling the program to impact more coaches will result in improved professional development and increased retention rates.”

Vernau returns to Denison for her seventh season as an assistant coach in 2026. Since joining the staff in 2019, Vernau has been instrumental in the Big Red’s success, contributing to a combined 84-38 overall record and a 37-2 mark in North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) play. Throughout her time, the team has secured four NCAC Championships and five NCAC Tournament Championship titles. Denison also made a historic NCAA semifinal appearance in 2021 and earned a spot in the third round in 2025.  Big Red Head Coach Amanda Daniels, former Assistant Coach Kat Schneeberger, and Vernau were honored as the 2024 and 2025 IWLCA Great Lakes Region Coaching Staff of the Year and as the 2025 NCAC Coaching Staff of the Year.

Peck enters her second year as a part-time assistant coach for John Carroll in 2026. In her first season with the Blue Streaks, the team open the season with a 14-game winning streak and finished the season unbeaten at home. JCU earned a share of the 2025 Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Championship title and captured their first OAC Tournament title since 2022. The Blue Streaks received an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament and recorded the program’s second-ever postseason victory. The Blue Streaks also placed nine players on the 2025 All-OAC team.

The IWLCA has contracted e.t.c coaching consultants to plan and execute the program’s curriculum with Sarah McQuade and Julie Muller once again serving as the lead facilitators. The parallel cohorts will partake in virtual and in-person programming throughout the fall semester, wrapping up in January 2026 to allow the participants time to focus on their teams and put their coursework to use during their competitive season.