June 23, 2004

BALTIMORE - US Lacrosse has announced the selection of the 47th class for the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame. The class includes a group of 10 individuals who have made significant contributions to the sport. The 2004 class will be honored Saturday, Nov. 20, at a formal induction ceremony at the Hunt Valley (Md.) Marriott. Their plaques will be located in the Lacrosse Museum and National Hall of Fame at the US Lacrosse headquarters in Baltimore.

This year's class includes Jane (Diamond) Barbieri, Richard "Dick" Edell, Rosalia Gioia, Jacqueline Hufnell, Barbara Jordan, M. Peter Kohn, Sal LoCascio, Dave Pietramala, Ruth "Stevie" Stevenson and J. Mike Thearle.

Candidates must have been out of college for 15 years and are nominated through a questionnaire. The top candidates are included on a national ballot sent to a random sampling of current Hall of Fame members, coaches, officials, reporters, US Lacrosse Board of Directors and chapter presidents. The men's and women's nominating committees use the votes from that sampling to determine a final slate of nominees to submit to the Board of Directors. The Board approved the current class at its June 12 meeting.

Jane Barbieri
West Chester University
Jane Barbieri was an outstanding player at West Chester (Pa.) and for the U.S. teams. She led West Chester to four consecutive undefeated seasons and served as captain of the 1975 team. She played on the U.S. team from 1973 to 1982, serving as captain for the 1982 team in the first World Cup, which the U.S. won. She made the all-tournament team at what is now known as the US Lacrosse Women's Division National Tournament from 1976 to 1982 and received the Beth Allen Award in 1980. She has coached at both the high school and collegiate levels and helped start the field hockey and lacrosse teams at Penn Charter when she served as the director of athletics. She has previously been inducted into the Pennsylvania Lacrosse and West Chester University halls of fame.

Dick Edell
Towson University
Head Coach - University of Baltimore, U.S. Military Academy, University of Maryland Dick Edell is one of the most respected college coaches of all-time. He ranks fifth among varsity college coaches with 282 career victories and his 17 NCAA Division I tournament appearances rank second all-time. Edell played lacrosse at Towson and was a head coach at the University of Baltimore (1973-76), Army (1977-1983) and Maryland (1984-2001). Edell was a two-time national coach of the year and led Maryland to the NCAA championship game in 1995, 1997 and 1998. Edell has previously been inducted into the US Lacrosse Potomac Chapter and University of Maryland halls of fame.

Rosalia Gioia
Hunter College
Rosalia Gioia spent over 50 years helping to develop the sport in New York. Though her school, Hunter College, had no lacrosse team during her college days, she went on to play for nearly 20 years with the New York Women's Lacrosse Association (NYWLA), participating in the US Lacrosse Women's Division National Tournament from 1953 to 1975. She also spent over 50 years officiating high school lacrosse and more than 30 years officiating at the collegiate level. She was president and longtime treasurer of the NYWLA. She also coached lacrosse at New Hyde Park Memorial and Great Neck high schools. She has been inducted into the US Lacrosse Long Island Chapter and Hunter College halls of fame.

Jackie Hufnell
West Chester University
Jackie Hufnell is one of the most highly-regarded lacrosse officials of all-time. Hufnell worked the final four of the NCAA championships 12 times and was an umpire at the 1993 World Cup in Scotland and the 1997 World Cup in Japan. She also served as a technical delegate for the 2001 World Cup in England. She was a past member of the United States Women's Lacrosse Association Executive Board and participated in numerous officiating clinics in the U.S. and abroad. Hufnell also served as the head coach at Downingtown High School from 1969-70 and 1972-74. She was inducted into the US Lacrosse Philadelphia Chapter Hall of Fame.

Barb Jordan
Penn State University
Barb Jordan has enjoyed tremendous success as both a player and coach. She was a three-time All-America selection at Penn State and served as captain of the 1985 Penn State team. She was a member of the U.S. Team from 1982 to 1989, participating in the 1986 World Cup. In 1992, she received the Beth Allen Award at the US Lacrosse Women's Division National Tournament. Jordan was the head coach at Bucknell from 1996 to 2002 and currently serves as the head field hockey and assistant lacrosse coach at Gettysburg. Jordan, who also umpired for six years, serves as chair of the U.S. Team Selection Committee. She was inducted into the US Lacrosse Philadelphia Chapter Hall of Fame.

Peter Kohn
Middlebury College
Peter Kohn is one of the most beloved and unique figures in the lacrosse world. For 50 years Kohn has been connected to the sport. A recent subject of a documentary chronicling his life, Kohn started as a field manager for the Park School in Baltimore in 1954. He was manager of the U.S. teams from 1978 to 1998, for the North-South All-Star game for over 25 years, for club teams in the United States Club Lacrosse Association for over 20 years, for Middlebury College from 1981 to 2003 and numerous other lacrosse events over the years. The lacrosse field at Middlebury was named in his honor and he was previously inducted into the US Lacrosse New England Hall of Fame.

Sal LoCascio
University of Massachusetts
Sal LoCascio is one of the most dominant goalies the sport has seen. LoCascio was a four-time All-American at the University of Massachusetts and played for the winning U.S. Team in the 1990, 1994 and 1998 International Lacrosse Federation World Championships. He was named the outstanding goalie at the 1994 championships. He helped Long Island Hofstra to four United States Club Lacrosse Association (USCLA) championships, was the USCLA player of the year in 1995, was a six-time all-pro with the New York Saints of the National Lacrosse League and helped the Long Island Lizards to the inaugural Major League Lacrosse championship in 2001. LoCascio also served as a head coach in both the NLL and MLL. He has previously been inducted into the US Lacrosse Long Island Chapter Hall of Fame.

Dave Pietramala
Johns Hopkins University
Dave Pietramala is regarded as one of the top defensemen of all-time and is now a successful head coach. Pietramala was a three-time first-team All-American at Johns Hopkins, was twice selected the top defensive player in the country and received the Lt. Raymond J. Enners Award as the USILA's top player in 1989. Pietramala was an all-world selection at the 1990 and 1994 ILF World Championships and was named the outstanding performer at the 1990 championship. Pietramala became the head coach at Cornell in 1998 and was named the national coach of the year in 2000. He returned to Johns Hopkins as head coach in 2001 and in four years has compiled a record of 47-10 while leading the Blue Jays to three straight NCAA final fours. He was the national coach of the year in 2002 and has been inducted into the US Lacrosse Long Island Chapter Hall of Fame.

Ruth "Stevie" Stevenson
Temple University
Ruth "Stevie" Stevenson was an early pioneer that helped developed women's lacrosse, particularly in the Philadelphia area. A Temple graduate, she was named to the United States Women's Lacrosse Association First Team in 1940 and made the Reserve Team several other years. From 1942 to 1971 she taught and coached at Lower Merion High School and she also officiated for over 25 years. She was president of the USWLA from 1950-51 and also served as treasurer. She was inducted into the US Lacrosse Philadelphia Chapter Hall of Fame.

Mike Thearle
University of Maryland, SUNY-Farmingdale
Mike Thearle was a standout defenseman in the early 1970s. He started his college career at SUNY-Farmingdale, earning first-team All-America honors twice. He moved onto the University of Maryland, earning second-team All-America honors in 1972 and first team in 1973. In 1973 he received the Schmeisser Award as the nation's outstanding defenseman while helping Maryland to the NCAA championship. Thearle played club lacrosse for 10 years and was a six-time all-star selection. He also played for the U.S. Team that won the 1974 world championship in Australia. He has been inducted into the US Lacrosse Long Island Chapter and SUNY-Farmingdale halls of fame.

Details about the 2004 National Hall of Fame Induction Celebration will be announced at a later date.