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bigail Rehfuss is always asked how she balances coaching Division I lacrosse while simultaneously working as a practicing attorney — she never knows how to give the perfect answer.

Among last year’s 120 D-I women’s lacrosse head coaches, Rehfuss was the only to pass the bar and actively work within the legal space. Nobody has ever seen somebody with a similar resume to hers. It’s Rehfuss’ discipline and work ethic on the field and in the office that makes her stand out.

“Whatever needs to be done, I make sure that it gets done…I’m very disciplined about knowing what needs to be done and getting it done,” Rehfuss said. “That discipline and the work ethic that I think I’ve always had, the combination of those two, really help me balance both and figure it out.”

Lacrosse and law are the essential parts of Rehfuss’ life. At Loyola University (MD) she starred, serving as a two-time captain across her four years with the program. After graduating in 2011, Rehfuss earned her J.D. from Albany Law School in 2014, beginning her work as an Associate Attorney at The Rehfuss Law Firm P.C. a year later — where she continues to work. While practicing law, Rehfuss immersed herself in coaching, serving as Siena’s head coach from 2018-23 before accepting an assistant coach position at Syracuse ahead of the 2024 season.

Rehfuss graduated from Loyola with bachelor’s degrees in Interdisciplinary Philosophy and Writing, but law runs in her family. After she graduated from Loyola, Rehfuss enrolled at Roger Williams University School of Law before finishing at UAlbany and passing the bar.

“Being a lawyer is really about lifelong learning, commitment, work ethic, strong judgment, leadership skills. So all of the things you have to do to excel in athletics in that way are very strong indicators of being a successful law student and lawyer,” said Rosemary Queenan, a Professor of Law at Albany Law School who taught Rehfuss.

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In law school, Rehfuss worked at the Office of the Albany County Attorney for nearly three years. Throughout that time, Rehfuss shadowed Tom Marcelle, now a New York State Supreme Court Justice, getting hands-on experience in court and client meetings.

But once she passed the bar, it was a “no-brainer” to join The Rehfuss Law Firm P.C. — a small law practice that has been passed down generations within her family in Latham, New York. Rehfuss’ father, Stephen, has been the Managing Partner since 1986.

“My dad and I are super close and he is one of my biggest role models,” Rehfuss said. “So having the opportunity to work with him was something that I always assumed I would do.”

Serving as an Associate Attorney, Rehfuss mostly works on research, writing, depositions and discovery work. She enjoys her job, but something was desperately missing from Rehfuss’ life: lacrosse.

“Working a 9-to-5, sitting at a desk all day, that’s a tough transition when you’re used to being an athlete and having your hand in multiple different things,” Rehfuss said.

After graduating from college, Rehfuss played in the United Women’s Lacrosse League. But that was just a small part of the attorney’s life. Then Shaker High School, Rehfuss’ alma mater, called, drastically changing her life.

In 2016, one season after coaching Shaker Middle School’s modified seventh and eighth-grade girls’ lacrosse team, she was named the high school’s Varsity head coach. Rehfuss worried about how this would affect her hours at the law firm, but Stephen fully supported her, allowing her to tweak her hours.

“It was great to see her doing two things that she loved doing and that she was actually very good at,” Stephen said.

In her first season coaching, Rehfuss led Shaker to be 2016 NYS Section II Champions and she was named the 2016 Times Union Coach of the Year. The program didn’t replicate their success the following season, but Rehfuss was presented with a new opportunity.

After Siena finished the 2017 season 1-15 under third-year head coach Bryana Borrelli, the Saints parted ways with her. On Columbus Day weekend, Rehfuss received a call from Siena Athletics Director John D’Argenio and then Assistant Vice President/Deputy Director of Athletics Lori Anctil inquiring about the vacancy.

It wasn’t an opportunity Rehfuss sought out, but it allowed her to jump to D-I straight from high school. With Stephen’s approval to handle all of the firm’s motions and appeals remotely, which she still does today, Rehfuss jumped at the chance.

But the Siena job wasn’t perfect. After Borrelli was let go, Siena players voiced their displeasure. The program was broken and needed repairing — something Rehfuss encountered as a player at Loyola.

“I knew (Rehfuss) wouldn’t be able to put the stick down and keep it down,” said Jen Adams, Loyola’s women’s lacrosse head coach since 2009. “We all knew lacrosse would have to continue to be a part of Abby’s life because she innately was just so great at the ability to share the knowledge and information she had as a coach.”

In the five seasons following the death of legendary head coach Diane Geppi-Aikens in 2003, the Greyhounds struggled immensely. In Rehfuss’ freshman season in 2008, Loyola went 6-10, its fourth consecutive losing season. But Adams joined the Greyhounds in 2009, leading them to an 11-6 record in her first season at the helm.

With Loyola, Rehfuss notched 177 career points, ranks fourth in program history with 153 draw controls and earned All-Big East First Team as a senior. But Rehfuss’ impact off the field as a two-time captain was just as impactful.

“I still draw examples from her when I’m speaking to my captains and my leaders now,” Adams said. “Just in the way in which she handled herself as one of the best players on the team but also as one of the players that had the influence and captured the attention of a locker room. (She) did it in such a powerful way.”

When Rehfuss arrived at Siena, the Saints’ program was under-budgeted, shared a locker room with the field hockey team and their culture was fractured. Once she took over, Rehfuss immediately drummed up internal and external support, bringing in better funding. But the team still struggled on the field, finishing the 2018 season 5-12. Despite Rehfuss’ heavy emphasis on building relationships, the locker room was still divided.

“The culture was struggling,” said Emily Fiorillo, a Siena defenseman from 2018-22. “(Rehfuss) was trying to get through but there was some apprehension. So after (the 2018) season, a lot of the girls that didn’t buy into what Abby was saying had left and we only had 20 girls on our roster. But it was the 20 girls who believed in the message and the 20 girls who wanted to be there.”

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Over the next five years, with players who bought into her culture, Rehfuss rebuilt Siena. The Saints reached three Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championship games (2019, 2021 and 2023) while Rehfuss became the program’s all-time leader in wins (53).

“Abby is really the definition of a leader,” said Danielle Schwan-Tetreault, who worked under Rehfuss for six years at Siena and became the program’s next head coach. “She’s someone who is fearlessly herself. She holds those around her to high expectations while also expecting that of herself.”

Rehfuss signed a contract extension through 2026 and didn’t intend to leave the program. But when she found out former Syracuse assistant coach Kenzie Kent left the program, her younger brother Stephen — who starred on Syracuse’s men’s lacrosse team from 2017-2021 — encouraged her to reach out to SU head coach Kayla Treanor. Within a week of speaking with Treanor, Rehfuss joined the Orange’s coaching staff.

As successful as Rehfuss has been on the lacrosse field, she’s just as accomplished as an attorney. In her time practicing, Rehfuss has won over 75 motions. Stephen said she was the best associate he ever had, but as her father, he joked that people should probably take that with a grain of salt.

“I don’t know how she does it given her responsibilities both at Siena and now at Syracuse, but she gets it done,” Stephen said. “She has an incredibly busy spring this year in terms of motions and appeals — this is about as busy as she’s ever been. But she just takes it in stride, she handles it, she doesn’t complain and she gets it done.”

Photograph courtesy of Syracuse Athletics

Published on January 31, 2024 at 11:03 pm

Contact Justin: justingirshon@gmail.com | @JustinGirshon