Two Ward Melville Alumni Inducted Into Lacrosse Hall of Fame

When it comes to lacrosse in Three Village, it seems success often breeds more success. Two Ward Melville alumni, Dave McCulloch (Class of 1981) and Chris Walker (Class of 1983), were inducted into the Long Island Metropolitan Lacrosse Foundation Hall of Fame on Saturday.

“It’s really humbling," McCulloch said. "We had players ahead of me who laid the foundation. It’s a real honor.”

McCulloch started his varsity lacrosse career as a junior in 1980, at a time where normally only seniors received playing time. He responded with 34 goals and 11 assists in leading the Patriots to win the Suffolk County Championship. For his senior year McCulloch was named a team captain and tallied 37 goals and 24 assists. He also received All League honors.

“He was our quarterback, our go-to guy," former Ward Melville lacrosse coach Joe Cuozzo said. "Carried us his senior year. He was a real hard-nose, tough-attack man.”

After graduation, McCulloch continued to build his Long Island credentials while at Hofstra. He was the team’s leading scorer and captain in his sophomore year.

Walker said he benefited greatly from Cuozzo's tutelage before his varsity career began. As a midfielder with average ability, a team short on defenseman for a summer league game before his junior year asked him to try defense. He would go on to be the leader on the back line for a team that went on to win two straight Long Island Championships.

“We liked his size, his attitude," Cuozzo reflected on Walker's change. "We felt he had a great future as a defenseman, and that turned out to be true. I have a lot of respect for him.”

During his senior year Walker rewarded the coach’s confidence by setting the record for goals by a defenseman in a season and the record at the time for points and assists by a defender.

Being inducted to the hall of fame was already a special occasion, but Walker said it was made even greater by the fact that he was inducted alongside a fellow Patriot.

“I’ve known Dave for years," Walker said. "He was a guy I admired since he was the best player on the little league baseball team.”

Perhaps their biggest contributions have taken place after graduation, as both played strong roles in advancing Three Village lacrosse. McCulloch, who still resides in Stony Brook, is in his 15th season as a coach for the Three Village Lacrosse League.

“I ran into Coach Cuozzo at a lacrosse function and he said ‘you have to start giving back,’" McCulloch said. "Teaching kids the ins and outs of lacrosse, it’s great.”

Walker recognized something was missing from the program, and after an eight year absence reinstituted the alumni game in 1998. For ten years Walker successfully organized the game from Maryland before giving up the reigns in 2008.

Cuozzo said that giving back “is one of the reasons why the program has been consistently successful, because of guys like that."

"They came back and appreciated what the program did for them and they want to give back," Cuozzo said. "They certainly have done that tenfold.”