Matt Bruzzese Receives 2026 James C. Metzger Lacrosse Leadership Award

The annual James C. Metzger Leadership Award for Nassau County high school boys’ lacrosse was presented to one player on each of the eight teams that competed in the finals of the 2026 Section VIII Nassau County high school boys lacrosse championships.

Each award recipient reflected the tenacity, honesty, commitment and positive attitude required in Nassau lacrosse. Each player also possessed the ability to inspire others on and off the field. One of the eight award recipients is senior faceoff specialist and midfielder Matt Bruzzese of Cold Spring Harbor High School.

The lacrosse championships were held on Monday and Tuesday, June 1 and 2, at Hofstra University. In the Class D championship game on Tuesday, Cold Spring Harbor defeated Locust Valley High School 12-2.

The award for Bruzzese, who is committed to Drew University, was announced by 1970s Long Island lacrosse star James C. Metzger, a three-sport athlete at Half Hollow Hills East in Dix Hills. He received the 1977 Lt. Ray Enners Award for outstanding Suffolk County lacrosse player when he scored 102 points and received All-American honors. An All-American lacrosse player at Hofstra University, Metzger is the founder and chairman of Whitmore – The Agency, an insurance and financial services firm in Garden City now known as Acrisure.