- December 4, 2025
Dewey Schoenfelder, Matanzas High School’s new boys lacrosse coach, is not much older than his players. Schoenfelder, who turns 24 in September, graduated from the University of Bridgeport this past spring.
His father, Mark Schoenfelder, is a longtime club swim coach. But Dewey fell in love with lacrosse, a sport he has played since he was 5. He was a star attacker at South Carroll High School in Sykesville, Maryland, and went on to play at Howard Community College in Columbia, Maryland, and Division II Bridgeport in Connecticut.
“He has the background at the next level, so he knows what it takes to get there,” Matanzas athletic director Zach Rigney said. “What stood out to me was his passion for the game, his desire to get into coaching and share that same passion with our students.”
Schoenfelder’s parents have lived in the Hammock since 2020, so he has spent his summers in Flagler County since graduating high school. He helped coach the Flagler Firehawks Lacrosse Club in 2023 and coached a club team in Maryland during his sophomore year at Howard.
“I’m super pumped,” he said of coaching the Pirates. “Obviously I love lacrosse. I’m grateful to Principal Mike Rinaldi and AD Zach Rigney for giving me the opportunity here.”
Schoenfelder said his love for the sport flagged during his freshman season of high school when his club team disbanded. His friend and high school teammate, Noah Homayouni, reignited his enthusiasm.
Tragically, Homayouni was killed in his front yard on April 2, 2020 while he was practicing lacrosse. According to the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, a combat veteran who reportedly was struggling with PTSD, fatally shot his estranged wife next door and then shot Homayouni before driving home and committing suicide.
“At first it killed me. Then it set a fire in me,” Schoenfelder said. “He was one of my best friends. He was a huge motivator. I grew up playing club with him. Both of our parents were teachers. I was always riding in the car with him. I used to be better than him, and he just worked and got better.”
At the time, the two friends were seniors and their final high school lacrosse season had been canceled due to COVID.
“I was super lost,” Schoenfelder said. “I didn’t know what I was going to do. (Homayouni) was going to Howard. When he died, I had to take his place.”
Schoenfelder played in the JUCO national championship game with Howard in 2022. In his junior season at Bridgeport, he had 25 goals and 26 assists.
Coaching, he said, “is all about getting the guys pumped up,” and the Pirates, he added, are hungry.
“As a team they want to win district,” he said. “The guys have a chip on their shoulder trying to re-establish Matanzas as a strong lacrosse program. To build a great team you need effort, accountability, falling in love with stuff you don’t want to do to be great. Choosing the harder thing ends up being easier on you. Life is hard either way, but it you work hard, it’s going to be easier.”
