Sachem Hall of Famer, Rick Mercurio, has traveled the world to teach game.
Another year, another country for former Sachem teacher and coach, Rick Mercurio. Since retiring from Sachem more than 10 years ago, he has been an instrumental part of the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) and its global development of the game.
In October, Mercurio and a contingent of lacrosse representatives from the United States, traveled to Thessaloniki, Greece to run a clinic.
Mercurio has also traveled to Russia, Belgium, Thailand and China for the FIL. The overall goal is to land lacrosse as an Olympic sport.
Mercurio is an inductee of the Sachem Athletic Hall of Fame, Long Island Lacrosse Hall of Fame, and Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame. At Sachem, he was a three-time Suffolk County Division I Coach of the Year, won 316 games, 16 league or division titles while appearing in seven county finals. He also led Sachem to a 1993 New York State Championship.
-Words by Chris R. Vaccaro