It's OK to lose to your opponent, but it's never OK to lose to fear.— Coach Rob
Rob Innella's lacrosse story started in 2005 with the TYLA Northwest middle school Vikings and a spot on the 2005 TYLA All-Star team. He went on to a four-year career at Northwest Guilford High School, including three years on varsity, where he became one of the best goalies in program history.
As a senior in 2009, Rob was named team MVP and earned both All-Conference and All-County honors. On April 21, 2009, he made 27 saves in a single game against Grimsley, the 8th-most in North Carolina history, to win 10–8. His .7714 save percentage that day still stands as a Northwest Guilford single-game record, and his 252 saves in a single season across 17 games (14.82 per game) remains a program record more than fifteen years later.
Rob played club for Old North State from 2006 to 2009 and earned a 2015 NLL combine invite. In adult men's league play he's a two-time Verizon Wireless MVP and an NC Fusion men's indoor champion who went 17–0 across a season for two titles, and was voted 3D Player of the Week 14 times. He currently tends goal for the Greensboro Gambler in the NABLL, where in 2025 he ranked 4th in the league with a .7978 save percentage over five games and was nominated for the NABLL Save of the Year award.
On the sideline, Rob is a defensive and goalie specialist coach with a 51–5 overall varsity record and two state championships across three varsity seasons, winning 2 of 3 title games. He coached at Northwest Guilford under Mark Goldsmith (2x State Championship Coach and NC Hall of Fame inductee) from 2010 to 2012, and currently coaches at Greensboro Day School's middle school program as well as an Assistant for Connor McDade (2x State Championship Coach), regular-season conference champions at 6–2, along with the TYLA Titans (3rd/4th grade), where 11 kids have scored the first goal of their lives in just two years.
His coaching philosophy is simple: it's built on trust. “If you can't earn trust from the players and the kids, you can't coach the right way,” he says. The game is meant to be fun, played fast, and played without fear. As he puts it, “it's OK to lose to your opponent, but it's never OK to lose to fear.” Rob believes lacrosse is for everyone, no matter their size, shape, ethnicity, or background, and that energy, effort, and attitude are the three things every player can always control. What wins games is ground balls, period. He coaches with love and passion, and does everything he can to protect the game and make sure it's honored and played the right way.
