Hall of Fame
Sharon Sarsen is the all-time winningest varsity field hockey coach in New York State and ranks 2nd in wins in the state as a varsity girls lacrosse coach—a rare feat to be among the top two winningest girls coaches in the state in two sports. She’s enjoyed great success as Lakeland High School’s (Section I) field hockey coach compiling an astonishing 659-73-40 record (.854 %) since 1982 and is still active. Her teams captured a record 13 NYSPHSAA Field Hockey State Championships including 9 in a row from 2009-17 and winning 10 of the last 11 state titles. Additionally, Sarsen’s teams have won 20 Section I crowns and 30 League championships. In the sport of girls lacrosse, she was the varsity head coach at merger Lakeland Panas High School from 1986-2015 accumulating an impressive 381-135-45 overall record (.679 %), winning 10 Section championships, 12 League titles and reaching the NYSPHSAA Final Four four times. She was Lakeland Panas’ first coach as she spearheaded the establishment of the girls lacrosse program in 1986. Despite retiring as the head coach in 2015, Sharon stayed involved with the program as an assistant coach the last four seasons. She’s just one of just two coaches in the state to win the NFHCA National Coach of the Year and twice won the NFHSCA North Region Coach of the Year. Sarsen was recognized for her many coaching accomplishments with inductions into the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Hall of Fame and the Westchester Sports Hall of Fame. Despite her success, she continuously has given to her school and the field hockey community coordinating the Shrub Oak Athletic Club Field Hockey program for grades 3-8, running early morning intramurals for middle schoolers before the school day, conducting numerous summer camps and chairing various field hockey and lacrosse associations. She is currently a physical education teacher and the athletic coordinator at Lakeland Copper Beech Middle School. Prior to her teaching and coaching career, Sharon was a multi-sport star at John Jay Cross River High School (Section I) then went on to earn a bachelor’s from SUNY Cortland and a master’s from Long Island University where she competed in both field hockey and lacrosse. She currently resides in Putnam Valley, NY.