November 3, 2008
By now, you know their names. You know how they played, how they coached and how they helped shape the game that we know today.
They've helped make lacrosse for us. But what made lacrosse for them?
In the November issue hitting mailboxes this week, Lacrosse Magazine presents our profiles of the National Hall of Fame's Class of 2008. The honorees will take their place alongside the game's greatest figures in the annual induction celebration, presented by Bollinger Insurance, on Nov. 8 in Hunt Valley, Md.
Join US Lacrosse today to start your monthly subscription to LM.
by Steven Russolillo, Special to Lacrosse Magazine Online
It was only two hours before a University of Virginia women's lacrosse game early in the 2002 season when Lynn Craun heard the news.
On her way from Harrisonburg to Charlottesville to referee the game, Craun stopped at her doctor's office for her bone marrow biopsy results. With emotions sky high for the beginning of another lacrosse season, Craun was diagnosed with leukemia.
"I didn't know what to do; whether I should have went to the game or not," Craun says. "But I decided to go, and I don't think I called a thing. I must have been awful. But after the game I told the people who I was working with what was going on, and they said they didn't even notice anything different."
Miraculously, Craun didn't let the diagnosis affect her as she continued umpiring through the entire season. She says the tremendous support she received from the lacrosse community certainly helped, as she was able to rearrange her schedule to accommodate a lighter travel schedule. Only a torn meniscus during her final regular-season game prevented her from umpiring in the NCAA tournament that year.
"My doctor kept telling me to stop, stop, stop, but I was too damn hard-headed and wouldn't listen," Craun says in her thick Virginia accent. "But tearing my meniscus certainly stopped me for sure."
Her drive and motivation are two of the main reasons for her induction into the National Hall of Fame. Craun -- a former team captain at James Madison University and member of the U.S. team in 1980 and `82 -- has widely been regarded as one of the top umpires in the country over the last 30 years.
"She doesn't just call the game for the rules; she calls the game for the game," says Jen O'Donnell, a 26-year referee who's been working with Craun for the last 20 years. "That just makes her so much better, because there are some people that are so black and white. And she's amazing because she just keeps reffing through everything. I keep telling her she's got nine lives. She's just a tough individual."
Craun has experience at the highest levels of the game nationally and internationally. She worked her first NCAA Division I championship game in 1998 and officiated at the last two IFWLA World Cups. She also officiated at the 1999 IFWLA Under-19 World Championship.
Recalling her bout with leukemia, Craun says her love for lacrosse is ultimately what helped her fight the disease.
"I wasn't always strong, but I wanted to go on and I knew I had to," she says. "Looking back, I'm sure lacrosse was the thing that kept me going, the desire to get back out on the field to be with my friends and colleagues and to continue on.
"I'm very appreciative and never would have thought in a million years that I would accept such an honor."
National Lacrosse Hall of Fame Class of 2008: LM's Profiles
* Roberta Brennan: All Jokes 'Til Gametime
* Lyn Craunn: Craun-ing Achievement
* Pat Dillon: Clear Signals
* Tom Marechek: Hollywood Ending
* Chris Sailer: Playing for Chris
* Dom Starsia: The 'Frozen Rope'
* George Tracy: Street Sense
* Dick Watts: 'Pappy' Gets His Due
Nov. 3, 2008
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They've helped make lacrosse for us. But what made lacrosse for them?
In the November issue hitting mailboxes this week, Lacrosse Magazine presents our profiles of the National Hall of Fame's Class of 2008. The honorees will take their place alongside the game's greatest figures in the annual induction celebration, presented by Bollinger Insurance, on Nov. 8 in Hunt Valley, Md.
Join US Lacrosse today to start your monthly subscription to LM.
by Steven Russolillo, Special to Lacrosse Magazine Online
It was only two hours before a University of Virginia women's lacrosse game early in the 2002 season when Lynn Craun heard the news.
On her way from Harrisonburg to Charlottesville to referee the game, Craun stopped at her doctor's office for her bone marrow biopsy results. With emotions sky high for the beginning of another lacrosse season, Craun was diagnosed with leukemia.
"I didn't know what to do; whether I should have went to the game or not," Craun says. "But I decided to go, and I don't think I called a thing. I must have been awful. But after the game I told the people who I was working with what was going on, and they said they didn't even notice anything different."
Miraculously, Craun didn't let the diagnosis affect her as she continued umpiring through the entire season. She says the tremendous support she received from the lacrosse community certainly helped, as she was able to rearrange her schedule to accommodate a lighter travel schedule. Only a torn meniscus during her final regular-season game prevented her from umpiring in the NCAA tournament that year.
"My doctor kept telling me to stop, stop, stop, but I was too damn hard-headed and wouldn't listen," Craun says in her thick Virginia accent. "But tearing my meniscus certainly stopped me for sure."
Her drive and motivation are two of the main reasons for her induction into the National Hall of Fame. Craun -- a former team captain at James Madison University and member of the U.S. team in 1980 and `82 -- has widely been regarded as one of the top umpires in the country over the last 30 years.
"She doesn't just call the game for the rules; she calls the game for the game," says Jen O'Donnell, a 26-year referee who's been working with Craun for the last 20 years. "That just makes her so much better, because there are some people that are so black and white. And she's amazing because she just keeps reffing through everything. I keep telling her she's got nine lives. She's just a tough individual."
Craun has experience at the highest levels of the game nationally and internationally. She worked her first NCAA Division I championship game in 1998 and officiated at the last two IFWLA World Cups. She also officiated at the 1999 IFWLA Under-19 World Championship.
Recalling her bout with leukemia, Craun says her love for lacrosse is ultimately what helped her fight the disease.
"I wasn't always strong, but I wanted to go on and I knew I had to," she says. "Looking back, I'm sure lacrosse was the thing that kept me going, the desire to get back out on the field to be with my friends and colleagues and to continue on.
"I'm very appreciative and never would have thought in a million years that I would accept such an honor."
National Lacrosse Hall of Fame Class of 2008: LM's Profiles
* Roberta Brennan: All Jokes 'Til Gametime
* Lyn Craunn: Craun-ing Achievement
* Pat Dillon: Clear Signals
* Tom Marechek: Hollywood Ending
* Chris Sailer: Playing for Chris
* Dom Starsia: The 'Frozen Rope'
* George Tracy: Street Sense
* Dick Watts: 'Pappy' Gets His Due
