Jack Symanski 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 junior defenseman and long stick midfielder Jack Symanski of Locust Valley 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, Locust Valley was defeated by Cold Spring Harbor High School 12-2.

The award for Symanski, who also plays football for the school, 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.