RallyNorth.net

Ryan to begin his 12th varsity season

Tuesday, April, 01 By Dan Guttenplan
Sports editor

Don't ask Newburyport senior Kevin Ryan to reflect on his days as a junior varsity athlete.

He can't.

That's because the three-sport standout never played JV. Ryan, a football, hockey and lacrosse standout, is entering his 12th and final varsity season at Newburyport High.

Ryan first cracked the varsity roster as a freshman football player, eventually earning a starting spot at outside linebacker for the annual Thanksgiving Day football game against Amesbury. He skated with the varsity that winter, serving as a member of Clippers coach Paul Yameen's defensive rotation. Newburyport football and lacrosse coach Ed Gaudiano called Ryan's number again that spring, slating him as a starting defenseman in lacrosse.

Ryan remains a fixture in the starting lineup in all three sports. Last fall on the football field, he was a Daily News all-star after leading all River Rival athletes with 10 <1/2> sacks. This winter on the ice, he rotated with Newburyport's top three defensemen for a team that advanced to the Division 2 North semifinal. Gaudiano has Ryan pencilled in to start at defense this spring in lacrosse | his fourth straight season cracking the starting 10.

"It's amazing it's coming to an end," Ryan said. "You always get excited for every season. It seems like yesterday when I was playing for the first time. I still get a rush."

Ryan will attend Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, New York next fall. Hobart coach Mike Cragg has the 205-pound Ryan slated to play outside linebacker. Gaudiano believes the transition for a high school athlete to college is more drastic than that of an eighth-grader to high school.

"Not to take away anything he's done for us | because he's been extremely reliable and consistent | but there's always a mystery about what will happen at the next level," Gaudiano said. "He'll be 18 going against 22-year-olds. That's a little different than coming up as a freshman in high school. But he has all the tools. He knows the work ahead of him."

Hobart, a Division 3 school in football, finished 8-3 last season and 6-1 in the Liberty League. To contrast, the hockey team advanced to the Division 3 Frozen Four as recently as 2006. The lacrosse team plays in Division 1 and has qualified for the NCAA Tournament 25 times.

Still, Ryan's decision to choose football was not difficult.

"Football is definitely my favorite," Ryan said. "I'd have to say my greatest high school moment was starting against Amesbury on Thanksgiving Day my freshman year. It's such an intense rivalry in every sport. Every game I play or watch, I know Amesbury is going to give Newburyport a great game."

In hockey, Ryan is a sturdy defenseman who is rarely out of position. He won't outskate many opposing forwards, but he will rarely make the costly mistake that results in opponents' goals.

"It was always an adjustment going from football to hockey," Yameen said. "We got a lot of good years from him. And the team did well every year he was here. He was a part of all those teams."

On the lacrosse field, Gaudiano relies on Ryan to defend one of the opposing team's top scorers.

"He'll defend one of the two top attackmen on the other team," Gaudiano said. "He can combine the toughness and footwork needed to stay with the top attackmen who are skilled and athletic."

Bringing different skill sets in each sport, one constant appears to carry over for Ryan: his leadership abilities. His teammates voted him a captain as a senior in each sport. Rarely does an athlete pass through Newburyport with such intangibles, according to Gaudiano.

"It's hard to put a finger on it," Gaudiano said. "When a kid comes and plays for four years, there's no mystery why they're successful. He's upheld his end of the bargain by being consistently tough and dedicated."