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09/19/2019 12:00 AMBernie Pellegrino has played a significant role in the progression of lacrosse in North Haven throughout the past decade. Bernie was a founding member of the girls’ youth program in town and went on to become an assistant coach for the girls’ lacrosse team at the high school. Now, Bernie is taking the next step as he was recently named head coach of the North Haven High School girls’ lacrosse squad.
Bernie spent the past six years on the Indians’ coaching staff, helping the program grow by leaps and bounds throughout that time. North Haven was just getting started as a varsity program when Bernie came aboard in 2014. Under Bernie and Head Coach Lois Frankforter, the Indians achieved several milestones, including their first postseason berth, a division title, and bump up from SCC Tier 2 to SCC Tier 1.
When Frankforter stepped down during the recent offseason, Bernie decided to apply for the head coaching position. He’s excited for the opportunity to lead North Haven as the team strives to keep climbing up the ranks.
“As soon as I heard that the position was available, I didn’t hesitate. I thought that I could do it, and I wanted to continue with some of the things that we’ve done to improve the program,” Bernie says. “I think having that continuity is important. Lois gave me specific responsibilities as an assistant coach. I felt that having played an important role on her staff would make the transition relatively smooth not only for me, but also for the girls on the team.”
Bernie grew up in North Haven and attended Notre Dame High School in West Haven, where he ran cross country before graduating in 1981. Bernie went on to get a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Notre Dame and his law degree from Boston College. He is currently a practicing attorney and a partner with The Pellegrino Law Firm in New Haven—a third-generation firm that was started by one of his grandfathers in 1928.
Bernie currently resides in New Haven, although he’s lived most of his life in North Haven. Bernie and his wife Karen have three children—Brett, Daphne, and Clara—who all graduated from North Haven High School.
Bernie first got involved with lacrosse when his kids played in the town’s youth program. In addition to coaching their teams, Bernie also served as vice president of the North Haven Lacrosse Club from 2011 to 2017. Meanwhile, Bernie joined the high school team as the girls’ JV head coach in 2014 and did that for one year before becoming a varsity assistant the following season.
Bernie feels proud about how much lacrosse has grown in North Haven at both the youth and high school levels. As the number of participating players has risen, so have the win totals.
“It’s terrific that both the boys’ and girls’ teams have continued to improve and see more success,” says Bernie. “Having been active at the youth level, the foundation that we laid there has been bearing the fruits of success at the high school level. The boys’ and girls’ teams work together to support each other, and that makes you feel good.”
Bernie wants his squad to function as a balanced unit and is placing an equal emphasis on offense and defense. He’s looking for all of his players to make an impact at each end of the field in every game. Bernie says the Indians will keep their motor going throughout all 48 minutes of a contest.
“They are going to play you hard right until the end of the game. We want to play the full length of the field, and we will play hard at both ends. Possession of the ball is so important at the high school level, and we have to have two-way players,” Bernie says. “And we have to be smart. We talk about that all the time. Even if we aren’t the biggest, fastest, and strongest team, if we play smart, we will eliminate mistakes and be successful.”
North Haven’s team motto is “Commitment and Accountability.” Bernie wants his athletes to set goals, work hard to achieve them, and get better every day. Bernie also wants to foster camaraderie among the Indians by making sure that everyone has fun. Bernie believes that North Haven will continue prospering if its players enjoy the experience of competing for the team.
“We’ve been fortunate to have good team chemistry with kids that get along well. We have a mentoring program where the older kids try to make the transition easier for the younger kids and make them feel at home,” says Bernie. “We want our practices to be run so that we get our game-plan set and reinforce the things that we maybe didn’t so well in the previous game, but we also want to have fun with what we’re doing. If everyone has fun while they’re working hard, they will enjoy it more and be more committed to what we’re trying to do.”
North Haven Athletic Director Steve Blumenthal has seen Bernie contribute to the Indians’ improvement as an assistant coach. Blumenthal looks forward to watching Bernie help North Haven continue its ascent in a head coach’s role.
“We are excited to have Coach Pellegrino as the head coach of the girls’ lacrosse program. He is passionate about coaching lacrosse and providing a positive experience to the North Haven girls’ lacrosse athletes,” Blumenthal says. “We are confident that there will be a great future for the North Haven girls’ lacrosse program under the direction of Coach Pellegrino.”
In terms of the future, Bernie is looking for North Haven to be a perennial State Tournament qualifier that’s competitive in SCC Tier 1. The Indians came up one win short of making the Class M State Tournament last spring, so getting back into the bracket will certainly be a goal next year. As time goes by, Bernie wants North Haven to start notching victories against the SCC’s top teams.
“If we work hard in practice and try to improve every day, I think we can do that without having to really change our schemes,” says Bernie. “It’s just a matter of doing the little things a little better every time, whether it’s defending or attacking the goal. If we do that well, we will be successful and achieve our goals.”
While the 2020 campaign is still several months away, Bernie is already putting the pieces in place to make sure that the Indians are ready to hit the ground running when the season begins.
“We will meet with the team in the next week or two to talk about the upcoming season, what our expectations are, and how excited we are to get started,” Bernie says. “We’re laying the groundwork and putting a plan together, so that we’re ready to go when our camp opens on March 15.”