We are so proud of Matt McKillop who was named this week to succeed his father, Bob McKillop the legendary coach who amassed over 600 wins during his time at Davidson. Matt not only played for Lightning but then went on to have an outstanding career at Davidson as both a player and coach. He earned his position as a now Head Coach though hard work and constantly learning at the direction of his dad and other great people affiliated with the stellar Davidson program. This past year alone, Davidson finished first in the highly competitive A-10 Conference and went on to play in the NCAA Tournament where they lost a one point game to Michigan State.

Matt was sent to play for Lightning on Long Island during the summer before his senior year. He played on the team that included Mike Grinnon who went on to earn a scholarship to the University of Maryland where he was part of the team that won the National Championship in 2002. That Lightning team also was led by Tim Doyle who played at both St. John’s University and then Northwestern. Tim is now a broadcaster for CBS Sports.  We are also super proud of Joe Russo who went on to secure a degree at the U.S. Naval Academy and  then flew fighter jets in the Middle East in defense of our country. Anthony Lopiano continued his playing career at Stamford where he earned a full scholarship. He now works for Northwell Health. Chris Kelly, the heart and soul of that team, is a New York city Firefighter protecting people every day in his chosen career. The team was coached by Jimmy Fox who went to coach for 18 years in collage basketball at Davidson and Appalachian State. He has now returned to his home and is the head of Lightning Basketball.

We congratulate Matt and all of his teammates for their success both on and off the basketball courts. These are great examples of the type of people Lightning has turned out during their great history.