BALTIMORE – The National Lacrosse Hall of Fame welcomed its 50th class on Saturday in a special ceremony held at The Grand Lodge in Hunt Valley, Md.
The National Lacrosse Hall of Fame is a component of US Lacrosse. The 2007 induction class consisted of Gail Cummings-Danson, Gertrude Dunn, Susan Ford, Tim Goldstein, Susan K. Kidder, Darren Lowe, Sharon Pfluger (Hopewell Township, NJ, formerly of Pompton Lakes, NJ), Karl Rippelmeyer, Thomas Sears and Brian Wood.
The National Lacrosse Hall of Fame was established in 1957 to honor men and women, past and present, who by their deeds as players, coaches, officials and/or contributors, and by the example of their lives, personify the great contribution of lacrosse to our way of life. More than 325 lacrosse greats are honored in the Hall of Fame, which is located with the Lacrosse Museum at US Lacrosse Headquarters in Baltimore.
Bios for this year’s inductees follow:
Gail Cummings-Danson (Temple University)
Cummings-Danson, the top goal scorer in women’s lacrosse history, is being inducted as a truly great player. Cummings-Danson scored a NCAA record 289 goals during her career at Temple, including 88 in 1988 when she led Temple to a perfect 19-0 record and the NCAA championship. She was a three-time All-American, earning first team honors in 1987 and 1988. Cummings-Danson played for the Canadian national team from 1982 to 1989 and then helped the U.S. win the World Cup in 1993. Currently, the athletic director at Skidmore College, she previously coached lacrosse at Connecticut College, Temple and Albany. She has been inducted into the Temple University Hall of Fame and the Ontario Lacrosse Hall of Fame.
Gertrude Dunn (West Chester University)
Dunn, an outstanding all-around athlete, is being inducted posthumously as a truly great player. Dunn played on the U.S. national team from 1957 to 1963 and was a member of the U.S. team that toured Great Britain and Ireland in 1957. Dunn also served as an umpire for 20 years in the Philadelphia Women’s Lacrosse Association. Away from lacrosse, she played shortstop in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, made famous by the 1992 movie, A League of Their Own. She was the Rookie of the Year in the league in 1952. She was also inducted into the National Field Hockey Hall of Fame in 1988. She died in 2004 when the plane she was piloting crashed.
Susan Ford (Connecticut College)
Ford, a longtime fixture in the sport, is being inducted as a truly great contributor, for contributions in the fields of coaching, umpiring, development and service. A four-year player at Connecticut College, she later coached at Concord Academy and Wellesley College, leading her final team in 1988 to an undefeated record. An umpire for 35 years, Ford served on the United States Women’s Lacrosse Association Board of Directors for 20 years and helped transition the USWLA into US Lacrosse in 1998. Ford served on the Board of Directors for the US Lacrosse Foundation from 1998 to 2002. She has been inducted into the Connecticut College Athletic Hall of Fame and the US Lacrosse New England Chapter Hall of Fame.
Tim Goldstein (Cornell University)
Goldstein, a star attackman at Cornell, is being inducted as a truly great player. Goldstein led the Big Red to the 1987 NCAA championship when he was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament after scoring 25 points in three games, tying the NCAA tournament record. Goldstein led the nation in scoring that year with 100 points, becoming just the second collegiate player to top 100 points in a season. Goldstein was named a first-team All-American in 1987 and 1988 and received the Enners Award in 1987 as the USILA’s Player of the Year. Following college, Goldstein was a three-time club all-star and played on the 1990 U.S. men’s team that won a world championship. He has been inducted into the US Lacrosse Long Island Metro Chapter Hall of Fame.
Susan K. Kidder (East Stroudsburg University)
Kidder, a member of the first U.S. World Cup team, is being inducted as a truly great player. Kidder played four years at East Stroudsburg University and was named the school’s outstanding senior female athlete in 1969. She made the U.S. team for the first time in 1970 and her decade plus involvement with the program culminated in 1982 with the U.S. winning the first World Cup. Kidder was the head coach at Norristown (Pa.) High School from 1972 to 1981 and also served as an assistant coach for Ursinus College’s 1983 Division III national championship team. Kidder has been inducted into the East Stroudsburg University Athletic Hall of Fame and the US Lacrosse Philadelphia Chapter Hall of Fame.
Darren Lowe (Brown University)
Lowe, one of the top scorers in the sport’s history, is being inducted as a truly great player. Lowe holds the Brown University school record with 316 career points, the third-highest total in NCAA history. He received the Enners Award as the USILA Player of the Year in 1992 when he led Brown to the NCAA quarterfinals for the third consecutive year. Lowe was a three-time All-American and went on to earn all-club honors nine times, including being selected as the USCLA Player of the Year in 1998, 2001 and 2002. Lowe was named to the all-world team at the 1998 and 2002 ILF World Championships and served as a captain for the 2002 U.S. team, which brought home the U.S. its sixth consecutive world championship. Lowe has been inducted into the US Lacrosse Long Island Metro Chapter Hall of Fame.
Sharon Pfluger (The College of New Jersey)
Pfluger, who has won over 92 percent of her games at The College of New Jersey, is being inducted as a truly great coach. Pfluger has gone 318-26 in 21 seasons at TCNJ, setting a NCAA record with a career winning percentage of 92.4. Her teams have won 11 NCAA Division III championships and won a NCAA-record 102 consecutive games from 1991 to 1997. She has twice been selected the IWLCA Division III National Coach of the Year and she has also led TCNJ’s field hockey team to seven NCAA championships and nearly 400 victories since 1985. As a player, she was a two-time All-American at the school. Pfluger has been inducted into the US Lacrosse New Jersey Chapter Hall of Fame.
For Sharon Pfluger's Complete Bio:
Karl Rippelmeyer (United States Naval Academy)
Rippelmeyer, a star offensive player that helped usher in Navy’s dominance in the 1960s, is being inducted as a truly great player. Rippelmeyer earned All-American honors three times, including first team recognition in 1960 when he led the Midshipmen to the USILA national championship. He was the South team captain in that year’s North-South game. Rippelmeyer received several citations for his service in the U.S. Navy, including a Bronze Star and Navy Meritorious Service Medal. He has been inducted into the US Lacrosse Greater Baltimore Chapter Hall of Fame.
Thomas Sears (University of North Carolina)
Sears, a dominant goalie for two national championship teams, is being inducted as a truly great player. Sears was a three-time All-American at North Carolina, earning the C. Markland Kelly Award in 1981 and 1982 as the nation’s outstanding goalie. He led Carolina to national championships both of those years and was also the ACC Player of the Year in 1982. Sears helped the U.S. to the International Lacrosse Federation World Championship in 1982 when he earned all-world honors. He has been inducted into the US Lacrosse Greater Baltimore Chapter Hall of Fame.
Brian Wood (Johns Hopkins University)
Wood, one of the most prolific attackman of his era, is being inducted as a truly great player. Wood was a four-time All-American at Hopkins, earning first team honors his final three seasons. He helped Hopkins to three national championships (1984, 1985 and 1987), finishing his career with 100 goals and 78 assists. Wood was a member of the 1986 U.S. team that captured the world championship and he has also coached the sport at several levels.
US Lacrosse, a 501(c)(3) corporation, is the national governing body for men’s and women’s lacrosse. US Lacrosse has more than 215,000 members around the country. To learn more about the organization, please visit the Web site at www.uslacrosse.org.