Huntington Alum Feted at
Hall of Fame Induction
Brian Lantier flew 3,000 miles to be there, but he never felt more at home during the 2011 Long Island Metropolitan Lacrosse Foundation's Hall of Fame dinner at the Huntington Hilton.
Mr. Lantier, a member of Huntington High School's Class of 1960, was inducted into the same Hall of Fame that includes the players and coaches who helped establish Long Island as perhaps America's most fertile breeding ground for the sport's stars.
A group of former Huntington sports luminaries attended the festive gathering, including such Blue Devil personalities as Bill Pettit ('60), Hutch Vander Schuyt ('65), Paul McDermott ('80), Jerry Asher ('59) and Bob Pritzlaff ('60).
The Huntington lacrosse program is one of the most storied in the state, if not the nation, and its alumni include countless college All-Americans. Mr. Vander Schuyt, who played competitively at the University of Maryland, received the 2011 Harvey Cohen Outstanding Lacrosse Service Award at the recent banquet.
The event drew a crowd of 315. "It was a really fun night," Mr. Vander Schuyt said. "Brian's a great guy and it was nice to get 'the over the hill gang' together," he said about all the Huntington alums in attendance.
Mr. Vander Schuyt has worked with Blue Devil players for the past four decades and spent countless hours volunteering and helping the sport grow in the community.
The Huntington lacrosse program's founder, Don Loughlin, introduced Mr. Lantier to the sport. The new Hall of Famer was an offensive force to be reckoned with and earned a spot on the 1960 LI Lacrosse all-star team and the first team All-Scholastic squad.
Mr. Lantier went on to play five years of college lacrosse, shattering scoring records at the US Naval Academy. Over his final four years, Navy lost only one game and won three national college lax championships.
The former Blue Devil great was a three-time college All-American, winning honors at attack in 1963 and for his midfield play in both 1964 and 1965. He captained Navy's 1965 team that went undefeated and won college and open national crowns. It marked the first time in 42 years (and last time since) that a team had accomplished such a trifecta.
After graduating from the Naval Academy, Mr. Lantier spent five years as a naval officer on sea duty, seeing combat action in the Vietnam War. After leaving the U.S. Navy, Mr. Lantier played for the Philadelphia Lacrosse Club being he embarked on an international banking career, working for some of the world's biggest financial companies. He has served on the U.S. Lacrosse Foundation's board of directors and was finance chairman of the U.S. Naval Academy alumni committee that built the $3 million Navy Lacrosse Hall of Fame.