The National Interscholastic Lacrosse Coaches Association announced its 2024 Hall of Fame class earlier this month. They’re among the most recognizable names in high school boys’ lacrosse history.
They will be enshrined at the NILCA’s annual banquet and ceremony on Oct. 12 at the Milleridge Inn in Jericho, New York.
BOB MACALUSO – NORTHPORT (N.Y.)
A longtime coach at Long Island powerhouse Northport, Macaluso won more than 280 games at the helm — notably leading the Tigers to a state championship in 2001. Northport made it to the Suffolk County final four in his last 12 seasons. Macaluso retired in 2007 but resurfaced later as the head coach of New Zealand’s national team, which he led to a 12th-place finish in the 2014 world championship.
PAUL MCDERMOTT – HUNTINGTON (N.Y.)
A two-time NILCA Coach of the Year, McDermott enjoyed a storied career at Huntington. He led the Blue Devils to three Long Island and two New York state championships to go with 19 league titles. His 304 career wins included a 63-game winning streak and No. 1 national ranking in 2007 when the Bratton twins were turning heads at Huntington. McDermott also served as vice president of the Suffolk County Lacrosse Association from 2000-2014. He was inducted into the Long Island Metro Lacrosse Foundation Hall of Fame last year.
TOM ROTANZ – SHOREHAM-WADING RIVER (N.Y.)
A three-time Long Island Coach of the Year, Rotanz compiled over 250 wins in 18 seasons at Shoreham-Wading River — a program he inherited as a scrappy startup in 1995. He led the Wildcats to state championships in 2001, 2007 and 2012. He also has 10 county and five Long Island titles to his credit. Rotanz served on the coaching staff for the gold medal-winning 2012 U.S. U19 team.
GEORGE SEARING – NORTHPORT (N.Y.)/YORKTOWN (N.Y.)
Macaluso’s co-head coach on Northport’s 2001 state title team, Searing’s coaching career started in the 1980s at another New York powerhouse in Yorktown. Between the two schools, he coached high school lacrosse in some capacity (assistant, head coach, and co-head coach) for 25 years and won five state championships. Searing also coached at the collegiate level, winning a pair of NCAA Division II titles as an assistant at NYIT in 2003 and 2005 before returning to Northport in 2007. He moved to Florida in 2020 and is now the head coach at Naples.
BILL TURRI – WEST ISLIP (N.Y.)
A longtime assistant at West Islip, Turri was the defensive coordinator and Scott Craig’s top deputy for over 30 years. Together, they won over 400 games, five state championships, and nine Suffolk County titles. Craig was inducted into the NILCA Hall of Fame two years ago. Now it’s Turri’s turn.
