BLACKSBURG, Va. – The Virginia Tech men's lacrosse team is excited to announce the hiring of Panchito Ojeda as its next head coach.

Ojeda joins the Hokies after a six-year stint at Sonoma State and replaces Tim O’Brien, who stepped aside after completing his PhD in Biomedical Engineering and accepting a job in industry.

"We are thrilled to welcome Panchito Ojeda to the Virginia Tech men's lacrosse program,” O’Brien said. “Panchito brings forth an abundance of coaching experience to the program. He will be a great mentor for our student-athletes on and off the field.

“I am truly excited to see him take this opportunity to build upon the strong tradition of Hokie lacrosse and elevate the team, program, and overall the lacrosse community in southwest Virginia to new heights."

At Sonoma State, Ojeda led the Seawolves to a 46-42 record from 2014-19 and qualified for the WCLL playoffs in each season, including a run to the championship game this past spring. He acted as the assistant coach at Sonoma from 2011-13.

In addition to running the Sonoma program, he created a youth program (101 Lacrosse) based in Northern California.

Prior to joining the Seawolves, Ojeda was the head coach at Marquette before the program’s leap to NCAA Division I.

A native of the D.C. Metro area, Ojeda played his high school lacrosse at Bishop Ireton High School, graduating in 1999. He played four years at midfield for Marquette, earning numerous team and conference accolades.

“I would like to thank the captains, officers and Coach O'Brien for the opportunity to come to Virginia Tech,” Ojeda said. “I am humbled and honored at the confidence the team has in me. The opportunity to coach at a school with such a rich academic and lacrosse environment is special. We are going to build on the great tradition of excellence at Virginia Tech. I cannot wait to get started on the next chapter of Virginia Tech lacrosse. Go Hokies!”