These eight (8) GLOA members are running for four (4) spots on the GLOA Board. Per the by-laws, all members seeking a spot on the board run for at-large seats, the board then elects their officers. There are currently two (2) open seats: Landon Hunsucker, the current Secretary, is running for re-election while Ryan Rowe has decided to retire from the Board. The board feels that with the increased amount work required on the part of the current board members, coupled with the spike in interest of highly qualified candidates seeking election, it was time to expand the size of the board from the current nine to eleven members (see By Laws Section 2.3)
- Therefore, GLOA members will vote for the four (4) candidates they feel will serve in the best interest of the association.
- The four (4) candidates with the largest vote totals will be elected to serve on the Board.
You can reach each candidates statements below. These are listed in alphabetical order. If you have questions for the candidates please feel free to reach out to them to discuss their positions.
Ballots Emailed Out
Ballots were emailed on Tuesday, June 12, to the email listed in arbiter for all adult GLOA members and will come from [email protected].
Votes must be completed by 5:00 pm on Friday, June 22.
If you have any issues with the ballot, contact Greg Hite ([email protected]) or Jeremy Redmon ([email protected]) ASAP.
Clyde Allen Jr.
My name is Clyde Allen and I am running for a position on the GLOA Board. I started my officiating career with GLOA in 2012. GLOA has provided adequate training, positive feedback, and challenging assignment opportunities, all helping me to continuously develop into a better lacrosse official. The foundation of what I attained with GLOA helped propel me into becoming a NILOA official in 2016. My goal is to now yield GLOA the same level of commitment the organization has given to me.
My vision is to further grow the GLOA brand. We can achieve this by continuing to train and develop officials, enhancing the officials evaluation process, increasing efforts to retain officials, and strengthening our relationship with GHSA. Vote for me and I promise to serve GLOA with professionalism and dignity. Thanks.
Luis B.Diaz
I would like to considered for a position on the Board. The following are my years of service:
- 1970 to 2018 HS Official
- 1975 to 2018 NCAA Official for Div. 1,2 and 3
- 1994 World Games Official
- Numerous tournaments throughout the country
My vision for GLOA is to train all officials to work in conjunction with the rest of the country and to aspire to be one of the best.
Brian Higgins
My experience in sports is very valuable to any group. I played hockey at a high level and went on to run a hockey rink in Chicago/Detroit for 9 years. I understand the business side and how decisions affects players, parents, coaches, and refs.I can help make clear decisions while seeing the entire picture and how each entity is affected.
My vision is to strive to get all refs on the same page as much as possible. We need to continue to recruit more officials. I would like to help develop a system that tracks coach behavior and trends related to the game. Thanks!
Landon Hunsucker
Landon Hunsucker has worked youth, club, and high school lacrosse games since 2003. He has also officiated NCAA and MCLA college lacrosse since 2005 and is a current member of NILOA. Landon has had the opportunity to officiate four (4) GHSA State Lacrosse Championships. In addition, he has officiated a MCLA/SELC championship and two (2) NCAA/SAA Tournament semifinals.
Landon has served as a member of the GLOA Board of Directors under three Presidents as Secretary and Vice-President. Landon has also had the privilege of serving two (2) terms as President of GLOA.
Over the course of his service to the GLOA Board of Directors, he has helped direct significant association membership growth, effective training and promoted positive visibility within GHSA, Georgia Lacrosse Foundation other youth lacrosse organizations in the state and region. The objective is to continue that positive growth for the association, maintain a positive relationship with GHSA, GLF and the numerous youth organizations throughout the state and region. I would like to see the GLOA philanthropy efforts continue to expand by growing the Ron Mallonee and Kevin Moore Funds that help not only the members of the association but also the players and communities we serve.
Landon is a native of the great state of Virginia. He is married and has a son and three daughters. He currently resides in Marietta, GA. Landon also officiates football for GHSA and other youth organizations in the state.
Topher Lawson
Greetings fellow referees. My name is Topher Lawson. I have been involved with the sport of lacrosse for 31 years. In that time, I played Division I lacrosse at University of Hartford. I have coached at college club level, high school varsity, and youth lacrosse. I have refereed lacrosse as a member of GLOA for 11 years and have refereed football as a member of GOAA (Georgia Officials Athletic Association) for five years. Being a member of both GLOA and GOAA allows me to evaluate and consider alternative methods between the two associations in order to improve the efficiency of GLOA. If I were elected to this board, my primary focus would be devoted to improved transparency, overall referee equality and continued education. Therefore, I am asking for your vote to serve on the GLOA Board in the upcoming elections.
Tom Lilly
Has been participation in the Lacrosse community 2006 as a parent, official, coach and Jr. Greyhounds’ Lacrosse Board member for two seasons ’09 & 10.- Participated & completed both Laredo 2 & Laredo 3 officiating the championship game at Laredo 3
- 1999-2011: USA Hockey certified official
- 2008-current: Member of GLOA & GWLUB High School Official’s Associations
- 2017-current: Member of CWLOA officiating college women’s lacrosse
Goals as a board member of GL0A: To Improve our association by growing our numbers and quality of our members both new and existing. Assist with communication to our members the goals and objectives as an association. With the help of input and action from our non-board members, recruit and train new officials, offering positive feedback among our peers with the goal of bettering the product we put out on the field. There is tremendous growth in the game with opportunity to advance into officiating college games if desired. The journey starts with membership in GLOA and requires volunteerism beyond being a board member.
Herbert Phillips
I would like to submit my name (Herbert Phillips) for a at-large seat on the GLOA board. I became a member of GLOA in 2010 and in that time have worked numerous games, completed LAREDO 2 and 3 training, and worked three GHSA State Finals. I am also a member of the NILOA association which officiates lacrosse at the collegiate level. In addition to lacrosse, I am also have 15 years of experience as a football official. My vision for the organization is broken into two parts, recruiting and training. With the enormous growth in our sport, recruiting and retaining officials is imperative. After the recruitment, we must improve training of these and existing officials to expand our capability to work all levels of games (especially at the 3-man level).
Trey Towery
As a former player, I have watched the game grow and develop since 1993. I joined the association in the Spring of 2006 and have officiated four GHSA State Championships. I have been a collegiate official since 2008 and have been awarded two NCAA Division 2 semi-finals. In 2016, I was selected to join both professional leagues (NLL and MLL).
Georgia High School lacrosse has experienced an extreme growth from 10 teams in 2000 to more than 100 Varsity programs this past year. With that growth, we have had to focus much of our recruiting in other sports officiating to get games covered. Other sports officials are great and will need to continue to be a source for our association; however, as a sport, we need to do a better job converting previous players to officials. I would like to join the board in improving that conversion and discuss other areas of opportunity. Thanks for your consideration.