Rogers, Greer, Sawyer, and Walker-Welch highlight Rock Stars leadership

TRAC Athletics is excited to announce program-propelling changes and additions to the Rock Stars Elite Lacrosse Program leadership and staff ahead of the upcoming 2026-27 season.

Toronto Rock captain and TRAC Athletics Director, Challen Rogers, has been appointed the Rock Stars Boys Director, Rock Stars Recruiting Director & Academic Advisor, Bill Greer, will also now serve as the Rock Stars Girls Director, longtime and still-serving Rock Head Coach, Matt Sawyer, is the new Managing Director of TRAC Athletics, and finally, recent University of North Carolina graduate and medal-winning member of Team Canada, Brooklyn Walker-Welch, has been added to the program in a lead coaching role for the Rock Stars Girls.

Rock Assistant Coach, 2026 National Lacrosse League Hall of Fame inductee, and TRAC Athletics Director, Dan Dawson, will continue leading the Rock Stars Developmental Program, while former NLL player and Rock Stars coach Doug Noganosh will remain in his role as a lead coach with the Rock Stars Girls teams.

The Rock Stars Program provides players with industry-leading training, competition, coaching, guidance, and mentorship while embodying the same core values and principles as the NLL’s Toronto Rock. During the 2026-27 season, a total of 14 Boys and Girls Rock Stars teams will train and compete in field, box, and sixes lacrosse at the world-class Toronto Rock Athletic Centre. The teams will also take part in tap-ranked showcases and tournaments throughout Canada and the United States as part of their full-season schedule.

Challen Rogers and Bill Greer to lead Rock Stars

“I am extremely excited to fill the shoes of a great mentor of mine and strive to exceed the expectations of the new opportunity ahead,” said Rogers, speaking of Toronto Rock legend and former TRAC Athletics and Rock Stars Director, Colin Doyle, who earlier this summer joined the coaching staff of the Stanford University Women’s Lacrosse Program. “Nothing will change, a focus on consistency in developing great lacrosse players, and above all else, developing great leaders and respectable young men.”

Rogers, who has been a highly involved coach with the Rock Stars since the program’s inception in 2021, is a former four-year standout at Stony Brook University, a gold medal winner with Team Canada, as well as a champion in both the National Lacrosse League and Premier Lacrosse League. Rogers has also been instrumental in helping grow the Rock Elite League to record-setting status in recent years, and instrumental in all leagues, programs, and camps hosted at the TRAC.

Meanwhile, the Girls Rock Stars see a familiar face in Bill Greer as their new Director. Since joining TRAC Athletics as the Rock Stars’ Recruiting Director & Academic Advisor in 2022, the program has seen a steady increase of players committing to schools throughout the NCAA ranks. Greer, who spent five seasons playing for the Rock during his impressive 15-year NLL career, has a strong coaching resume to match. A long-standing coach within the Burlington Minor Lacrosse Association, Greer is a two-time Minto Cup winner while coaching the iconic Six Nations Arrows club of the Ontario Junior Lacrosse League (OJLL), and also a U13 OLA Field & Box Provincial Champion, coaching Burlington to both titles in the same season (2025). Prior to joining the TRAC Athletics staff, Greer also served as an Assistant Coach with the NLL’s San Diego Seals. Over the previous three years, Greer has spent countless hours coaching at the TRAC with the Rock Stars, Rock Elite League, and other development-focussed initiatives. Greer has been a teacher within the Peel District School Board for nearly 20 years, and currently serves as a Student Success Teacher at Clarkson Secondary School in Mississauga.

“It’s hard to put into words how excited I am for this upcoming Rock Stars season,” said Greer. “We’ve continued to evolve our program into a year-round model built around development, competition, and exposure.

“Our goal is to help every athlete become a better teammate and a more complete player in both the box and field game, while providing our recruitable athletes with meaningful opportunities and a platform to showcase themselves.”

Both Rogers and Greer, within their new respective roles for the Boys & Girls Rock Stars, will oversee the execution of all Rock Stars programming, ensure teams are entered in tournaments and showcases that garner them maximum scouting exposure, manage and mentor the program’s industry-leading coaching staff, provide weekly communication to Rock Stars players and parents, communicate regularly with collegiate coaches and scouts regarding the Rock Stars recruitable players, and aide in other areas in order to help Rock Stars players achieve their goals on the field and in the classroom.

NLL Cup-Winning head coach to take on increased role at the TRAC

Just months after guiding the pro team to their historic seventh NLL Cup win, Matt Sawyer moves from serving as TRAC Athletics Business Manager to Managing Director, where he will oversee the execution of all TRAC lacrosse programming, including the Rock Stars. Sawyer, who in coming months will enter his tenth NLL season as the Rock’s Head Coach, has also worked intimately on all TRAC-based leagues, programs, camps, and events since officially joining TRAC Athletics in 2021. Past his NLL-specific coaching accolades, Sawyer is also a three-time Minto Cup winner with the Orangeville Northmen, and continues to serve as the Oakville Rock’s Head Coach in Major Series Lacrosse.

Brooklyn Walker-Welch joins Doug Noganosh as lead girls coaches

Joining longtime Rock Stars Girls lead coach Doug Noganosh is Brooklyn Walker-Welch, one of Canada’s most prominent names in the women’s game. A recent graduate of the University of North Carolina, where she won an NCAA DI National Championship with the program in 2025, Welch’s lengthy list of collegiate and International accomplishments include multiple Tewaaraton Award nominee and watch-list mentions, over a dozen US Lacrosse, IWLCA and Nike Lacrosse All-American Team selections, a 2025 All-World Team pick at the Pan-American Women’s Lacrosse Championships, plus multiple medals won in both field and box lacrosse with Team Canada.

“I’m incredibly excited to join the great program that Colin Doyle has helped build and foster,” said Welch. “I can’t wait to get started and be part of what’s ahead for the Rock Stars!”

The Rock Stars Girls fall training begins on Sunday, September 13, while the Boys kick off their season at the TRAC later this month. Follow TRAC Athletics on Instagram @TRACAthletics to keep up with the Rock Stars upcoming 2026-27 season, plus visit tracathletics.com/program/rock-stars-boys and tracathletics.com/program/rock-star-girls for the Boys and Girls training and events schedule.