Rosalia ‘Ro’ Gioia, a 2004 inductee into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame who spent more than 50 years helping to develop and support lacrosse in New York, has passed away. She was 94 years old and the second oldest living member of the Hall of Fame.
Gioia was a longtime club player, a high school coach, spent over 50 years officiating high school lacrosse and more than 30 years officiating at the collegiate level. Lacrosse was one of five sports in which Gioia was a nationally rated official, along with basketball, volleyball, softball, and track.
She was recognized by many as a champion for lacrosse and a pioneer for the development of the women’s game in New York City and on Long Island.
As a student at Hunter College, where she served as president of the Athletic Association, Gioia played both basketball and field hockey. Since the school had no lacrosse team during her college days, Gioia joined the New York Women's Lacrosse Association (NYWLA) and competed as a club player for nearly 20 years. She participated in the prestigious Women's National Tournament as a post-collegiate player from 1953 to 1975, and earned reserve status for the 1966 Women’s National Team.
Gioia later served as both president and longtime treasurer of the NYWLA, as well as chair of the Nassau County Lacrosse Officials Association. She was also chairperson for the US Field Hockey Association.
As a lifetime educator, Gioia coached lacrosse at both New Hyde Park Memorial and Great Neck high schools, where she also served as a revered physical education teacher.
“She taught more than gym. She taught us what integrity, compassion, initiative and respect looked like,” said Susan Neilson, one of her students and players at New Hyde Park Memorial. “You could miss a basket or a goal, but you couldn’t step out of the moral line. Good manners mattered. She was much feared but loved deeply by all of us who were lucky to be in high school during her tenure.”
In addition to her induction to the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame, Gioia was also a member of the USA Lacrosse Long Island Chapter Hall of Fame, the Hunter College Hall of Fame, and the Nassau County High School Athletics Hall of Fame.
A funeral Mass will be held on Friday, October 24 at 10 a.m. at the St. Aiden R.C. Church in Williston Park, N.Y.
