2011 Division III Goalie of the Year Johnny Rodriguez Diagnosed with ALS

Johnny Rodriguez, a three-year starter at Salisbury who capped his career in 2011 with a Division III national championship and Division III goalie of the year honors from the USILA, announced on Instagram on Tuesday that he has been diagnosed with ALS.

Sad news: Former MLL and @SalisburyMLAX goalie Johnny Rodriguez announced on Instagram that he has been diagnosed with ALS

The 2011 Division III Goalkeeper of the Year has started a GoFundMe to help with the medical costs

Donate here: https://t.co/Z8QqFWWrYj pic.twitter.com/AylCfG5xAL

— TLN (@LacrosseNetwork) January 17, 2024

A GoFundMe has been created to support Rodriguez and his family by his mother, JoEllen Rodriguez. She revealed that his diagnosis came on October 20, 2023.

“The mind is so much more powerful than we give it credit for, and though statistics will say ALS is 100 percent fatal, I 100 percent believe my family and I are going to get through this,” said Rodriguez, who was inducted into the Salisbury Athletics Hall of Fame in November for his exploits with the Sea Gulls.

Rodriguez saved 57.3 percent of shots at Salisbury, going 54-6 in his three-year career. He parlayed that successful 2011 season into a professional opportunity, as he was drafted by the Chesapeake Bayhawks of Major League Lacrosse in 2012. He also made stops with the Ohio Machine, Denver Outlaws, Rochester Rattlers and Atlanta Blaze in his MLL career.

His post-MLL career took him to Southern California, where he founded Pride Lacrosse and co-founded SoCal Rogue. He is the head coach of Mater Dei High School, which finished the 2023 spring season ranked as the No. 10 team in the USA Lacrosse West Boys’ Top 10.

“I would like to thank my Mater Dei family and lacrosse program, my friends and family and of course my wife and our little man Jett for helping me get to the mindset I’m in right now,” Rodriguez said. “I’m living my best life, and I do not need anyone feeling bad or sorry for me. Loving life is all I’m interested in right now.”