THE JOHN KRUMENACKER AWARD-NASSAU COUNTY PLAYER OF THE YEAR

The Nassau County Player of the Year Award is given annually to the most outstanding high school lacrosse player in Nassau County as voted by the NCLCA.  The award, first given in 1993, was changed in 1999 to honor the memory of the late John Krumenacker.  An All-American in high school at Farmingdale in 1981, Krumenacker was a four-time All-American midfielder at Johns Hopkins University.  He captained the 1985 Hopkins team that won the NCAA Championship, was a member of the 1986 United States World Championship team, and played for the Philadelphia Wings.  Tragically, John passed away after a brief in illness in 1998.  Longtime Farmingdale High School coach Bob Hartranft described John as “not only the greatest player I have coached, but the finest human being I have met in all my years as a coach or teacher.”

THE TOM FLATLEY AWARD



The Tom Flatley Award will be given annually, beginning in 2020, to a male Nassau County student-athlete that competed at a high level in the sports of football and lacrosse throughout his high school career. The winner will be selected by a committee of coaches from both the NCFCA and NCLCA, as well as Sewanhaka High School alumni. The Tom Flatley Award is named after one of the most successful football and lacrosse coaches in New York State history,  the late Tom Flatley.  Coaching first at Sewanhaka, from 1964 to 1983, and then at Garden City from 1983 to 2019, Flatley established a level of coaching excellence in football and lacrosse that few can match in New York State history. He won Long Island Championships in lacrosse at Sewanhaka and in football at Garden City, a feat unmatched in Long Island history. His football record at Garden City was 264-44-7 (an incredible 86% winning percentage), with 18 Nassau County Championships and four Rutgers Cup Championships. In lacrosse he won 131 games at Sewanhaka, was named the coach of the United States Men's National Team that won the World Championship in 1982, and at Garden City was the longtime junior varsity coach with a record of 357-31-2. A social studies teacher at both Sewanhaka and Elmont High Schools, Flatley was considered an exceptional tactician and defensive coach in football whose teams were always well prepared. 

THE BILL RITCH AWARD-THE NASSAU COUNTY ATTACKMAN OF THE YEAR
The Bill Ritch Award is given annually to the most outstanding high school attackman in Nassau County as voted by the NCLCA.  Bill Ritch was the longtime coach at Sewanhaka High School, and is widely considered the first great coach in Nassau County lacrosse history.  Ritch began his lacrosse career as an All-American at Syracuse University in 1938 and 1940 and played in the first North-South All-Star game.  He coached at Sewanhaka from 1948 to 1977, compiling an overall record of 360-75-1.  His teams won 91 consecutive games, a scholastic record that still stands today, and were Metropolitan-Long Island champions from 1949 to 1959, a period of eleven straight years.  Ritch was named the Nassau Coach of the Year and National High School Lacrosse Coach of the Year in 1972 as well.  During his tenure, Ritch coached some of the greatest offensive players in Nassau history, including Jack Daut, John Valestra, Eamon McEneaney, Bob and Norm Engelke, and Francis McAleavey, as well as future coaches in Richie Moran (Cornell), Tom Hayes (Rutgers), and Jack Salerno (Elmont).

THE JOHN DRISCOLL AWARD-NASSAU COUNTY MIDFIELDER OF THE YEAR

The John Driscoll Award is given annually to the most outstanding midfielder in Nassau County as voted by the NCLCA.  The award was originally named after Jim Brown, the NFL Hall of Fame running back for the Cleveland Browns, who is also considered by many to be one of the finest lacrosse players in the history of the sport.  Brown, who played lacrosse for Manhasset High School and Syracuse University, was elected to the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 1983.  The award was renamed in 2004 in memory of the late John Driscoll, who, like Brown, was an outstanding midfielder from Manhasset High School.  Driscoll won two Nassau County championships in 1975 and 1976, earning the Most Valuable Player Award in the championship game both years.  He was the only player in the pre-classification era (1961-1985) to win MVP honors twice.  Driscoll was an All-American at Manhasset in 1976, and was a two-time All-American at the University of Virginia in 1979 and 1980.  He was a club all-star for many years, played professionally for the New York Saints, and was a member of US World Teams.  He was inducted into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 1998. 

THE HOWDY MYERS AWARD-NASSAU COUNTY DEFENSEMAN OF THE YEAR
The Howdy Myers Award is given annually to the most outstanding defenseman in Nassau County as voted by the NCLCA.  The award is named after the late National Hall of Fame coach Howard “Howdy” Myers, who is considered by many to have been most responsible for the spread of lacrosse throughout Long Island during the 1950’s.  Myers was already a Hall of Fame caliber coach when he became the Athletic Director, football, and lacrosse coach at Hofstra University, having coached St. Paul’s (Md.) High School and Johns Hopkins University, where he led the Blue Jays to consecutive national championships from 1947-1949.  Myers led Hofstra lacrosse for twenty-five years, compiling a record of 180-115-3.  He won national coaching honors in 1970, and brought lacrosse to the forefront of Long Island scholastic sports by continually recruiting local high school talent for his squads.  His election to the Hall of Fame in 1971 while he was still coaching at Hofstra should give an indication of the respect Myers had earned both as a coach and innovator in the sport.

NASSAU COUNTY LONGSTICK MIDFIELDER OF THE YEAR
The Nassau County Long-stick Midfielder of the Year is given to the most outstanding player at the position in Nassau County, as voted by the NCLCA.

NASSAU COUNTY SPECIALIST OF THE YEAR
The Nassau County Specialist of the Year is given to the most outstanding player at the unique and often unheralded positions of faceoff midfielder or short-stick defensive midfielder, as voted by the NCLCA.

NASSAU COUNTY GOALTENDER OF THE YEAR
The Nassau County Goaltender of the Year Award is given annually to the most outstanding goaltender in Nassau County as voted by the NCLCA.