By Alex Leichenger

Former Loyola lacrosse coach Matt Lewis has accepted an offer to coach lacrosse at Harvard-Westlake, Head of Athletics Audrius Barzdukas said Friday.

“Matt Lewis is the man to lead our lacrosse program,” Barzdukas said in a press release. “He knows the game, our community and school. He expects excellence from himself, his staff and his players. Our program is in good hands.”

“There is a strong commitment to lacrosse at Harvard-Westlake – from the students, their families and the administration,” Lewis said. “That’s a great foundation to build on. Once we implement our system and get our athletes playing aggressively and with confidence, then we will put ourselves in position to be successful.”

Lewis played lacrosse at Penn State from 1994-1997 and coached club lacrosse teams before moving to Loyola, where he was an assistant in 2005 and the head coach from 2006-2009.

The Harvard-Westlake job became open when former head coach Mark Haddad left in late May. Since then, the athletic department has interviewed a wide range of candidates, with the search eventually coming down to two people. Lewis was offered the job Monday night.

Barzdukas said the school was fortunate that many coaches from the East Coast, traditionally the strongest lacrosse region in the nation, have started to look for jobs on the West Coast.

“There’s almost a California gold rush going on,” he said.