Coast Guard Academy, which will offer women's lacrosse as a varsity sport for the first time in the spring of 2015, named Ruth Ness the program's first head coach Friday.

The Bears will play in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference and will be eligible for the NCAA Division III tournament.

"I honored and grateful to have the opportunity to lead the Coast Guard in its inaugural season as a varsity program and really look forward to building a successful program and having success in the NEWMAC," Ness said in a statement released by the Academy. "It's a great and pretty competitive conference, but one that we can certainly do well in."

Ness was an assistant at Bowdoin for the past two years and helped lead the Polar Bears to the Elite 8 of the NCAA tournament in 2013. Ness, a native of Wolfeboro, N.H., graduated from the University of New England in 2005 and was the head coach at Elms College in 2012.

"As women's lacrosse becomes a varsity program for the first time this year at CGA, I am very confident that Ruth's combination of skill, coaching experience and recruiting expertise make her the perfect choice for this important position," CGA director of athletics Tim Fitzpatrick said. "It is evident that she is dedicated to the core values of the academy and understands the importance of providing our cadet-athletes with a top-notch experience. Her career in college lacrosse - both as a player and a coach - shows a demonstrated track record of achievement and success, and I know she will be a difference maker here at CGA."

- Day Staff Reports