Written by Michael Lewis

Former Long Island Rough Riders goalkeeper Tim Melia has been elected to the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame.

The East Islip, N.Y. native was among 26 individuals who will be honored at East Wind in Wading River, N.Y. on May 18.

“We are very proud of this year’s induction class,” Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame president Chris R. Vaccaro said in a statement. “These individuals represent the past, present, and future of sporting excellence at various levels of athletics in our county. I can’t wait to celebrate this spring.”

In 2007, Melia helped the Rough Riders finish fourth in the Premier Development League’s Northeast Division with a 7-6-3 record. In the first round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, Long Island dropped a 1-0 decision to the host Rochester Rhinos on Matthew Delicate’s 20th-minute score.

Melia showed patience and persistence to become of the most reliable Major League Soccer goalkeepers. After playing with the Rough Riders and Rochester, Melia performed with seven teams, including the Charleston Battery and F.C. New York in the USL and Real Salt Lake, Chivas USA, FC Dallas and D.C. United in MLS.

In 2017, the 36-year-old Melia has been voted the MLS goalkeeper of the year.

A graduate of East Islip H.S., Melia put together his strongest season that year, leading the league with a 0.78 goals-against average and 78.4 save percentage among goalkeepers to make at least 15 regular-season appearances. His 10 shutouts also ranked second in the league.

Born in Great River, N.Y., Melia graduated from East Islip High School. He played his college soccer at SUNY-Oneonta and Lynn University.

Melia also backstopped SKC’s Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup championship teams in 2015 and 2017, while being named player of the tournament in the latter competition.