Jim Darcangelo, a National Lacrosse Hall of Fame midfielder and co-founder of Lax World, died Saturday at his residence in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Darcangelo was a 1975 Towson graduate who was a three-time All-American, a three-time U.S. team member, and a three-time Gold Medal winner. Darcangelo died of cardiac arrest.
Darcangelo starred for Towson’s lone NCAA championship team in 1974, when the Tigers defeated Hobart to claim the first-ever Division II national title. He was the USILA Division II/III Player of the Year that year and then again in 1975. “Darky” went on to play for the Maryland Lacrosse Club and for U.S. teams in 1978, 1982 and 1986. He was inducted into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 1990, his first year of eligibility.
In addition to his playing exploits, Darcangelo left an indelible mark on the lacrosse community as the co-founder of Lax World, which he started with the late Lance Holden in 1988. What started as a single shop in Towson, Md., grew into a national chain of 16 stores, including locations in Colorado, Georgia, New York, Virginia and Washington. A pillar of the lacrosse industry, Lax World ceased operations in 2017, four years after Darcangelo sold the business and retired.
Darcangelo is survived by his wife, Marilyn, their two children, Jaret and Samantha, their daughter-in-law, Tracie, and a granddaughter, Isabella. His brother, Mark, was a three-time All-American at Hobart and is in the Hall of Fame at Hobart.
