Princeton University Athletics
Boyle-Ing Point
April 23, 2004 | Men's Lacrosse
April 23, 2004
The senior thesis, written on the subject of the psychological benefits of meditation on cognition, was handed in a day earlier, and now Ryan Boyle - as great as any player who has ever played lacrosse at Princeton, without exception - had a chance to look back and reflect.
"I still remember being a freshman," Boyle says. "I remember talking to [Rob] Torti, to [Matt] Striebel, to [Trevor] Tierney, to {Ryan] Mollett about their thesis. I remember thinking to myself that there was no way I thought I could do one.
"It's crazy how fast it's gone."
Crazy? Maybe. But not a second of it has been wasted.
Boyle's lacrosse resume is staggering. He has been a first-team All-America, a world champion, an Ivy League Player of the Year, an Ivy League Rookie of the Year. He has led Princeton in scoring for four years, the Ivy League in scoring for three years and Division I in scoring for one year. He has assisted on a goal that won an NCAA championship; he scored another with four seconds remaining to send Princeton to another Final Four. He had four assists against Johns Hopkins at Homewood Field in his first game; he has 22 points in eight career NCAA tournament games.
He ranks second in assists at Princeton and enters today's game against Cornell fourth in scoring, though he figures to get second in that as well.
"Overall, Ryan has never failed to live up to expectations, from his first game against Hopkins to his championship assist through this year," says Princeton coach Bill Tierney. "Most importantly, he has come such a long way as a leader, and his impact on Princeton lacrosse will go on for long time. That's much more important than goals and assists."
His greatest skill is his vision, his ability to see the play unfold long before it does. He has proven to be the perfect match for the offense of Princeton assistant coach David Metzbower, and the results have been obvious.
"To be honest, I think Metz is a genius," Boyle says. "He gets everyone in the correct spot. Every single one of his offenses is flawless. Every single one of our offenses puts pressure on the defense. It's up to us to execute it."
Boyle, from Hunt Valley, Md., has always been in a position to make those around him better. He was a quarterback in fooball, a point guard in basketball and an All-America attackman at Gilman School before coming to Princeton.
"I've always analyzed the games I've played," Boyle says. "I've done that in all sports. I've been lucky to have some of the coaches I've had, coaches who always stressed the importance of being unselfish. I learned how to play lacrosse in 4 on 3 and 3 on 2 drills, learning to be unselfish. When you look at the game that way, patterns begin to emerge. You can apply them to all kinds of situations. I'd say more than 50% of the assists I've had here have come when somebody's dodged, drawn a slide and given me the ball and made me read the open guy. It's like being a quarterback against a zone defense."
Boyle's career is fascinating in the way it mirrors another recent Princeton athlete, All-America baskeball player Brian Earl. Like Earl, Boyle came in as an extremely heralded recruit , made an immediate impact and went on to have an all-time great career at Princeton. They're both tough, clutch performers, though neither looked the part: Boyle is 5-11, 180, and looks like he just put down his surfboard, while Earl was a slender 6-2 with a baby face.
Perhaps it's their physical appearance, but their other great common denominator is the way they played their careers with a target on their backs. Earl and Boyle both have been subjected to the wrath of opponents and fans, and very few kind words were ever said about either player on various anonymous internet message boards. "It's a great comparison," Tierney says. "Like Brian, Ryan has to go down as one of toughest kids Princeton's ever had. Not in a fierce way, but in the way he stands up to the beating he takes, game-in and game-out. The special defenses. The way he puts himself in the line of fire as far as other teams sliding and hitting and making sure they know where he is. Maybe it's because he's not flashy. Maybe people don't understand his role when he only gets three or four points in a game, which is also funny. With the sheer physical punishment he's taken, it's amazing he's been the player he's been."
Boyle enters today's game with 143 career assists, still 39 away from Kevin Lowe for first place all-time. He tied the Princeton single-season record with 48 a year ago, equalling Jon Hess's 1997 total, and he owns the Ivy League record for assists in a six-game season.
He has 202 career points, nine away from Jesse Hubbard for third and 13 away from Hess for second behind Lowe's 247.
"We've had three of greatest feeders in history of the game in Kevin Lowe, Jon Hess and Ryan Boyle," says Tierney.
Boyle's first career assist came on an extra-man goal by Matt Striebel in the second quarter against Hopkins in 2001. His next two were to B.J. Prager, Boyle's favorite target in his Princeton career. Prager, who scored 34 goals on assists by Boyle, is followed not suprisingly, by Jason Doneger and Sean Hartofilis.
For all of his greatness, it's his work with Princeton's Class of 2007, the current freshmen, that is perhaps the most impressive part of Boyle's career. Princeton graduated Hartofilis, the third-leading goal-scorer in Princeton history and eighth in NCAA tournament history, as well as five of the top six offensive middies.
Despite those losses, Princeton is averaging the same 11 goals per game that it did a year ago. Much of the credit goes to Boyle and Doneger, who have blended their skills with the newcomers remarkably.
"It's been fun playing with so many talented people," Boyle says. "My game rests on the talents of other players. I told Peter [Trombino] and Scott [Sowanick] that they both can better than I am. They have the talent. I'm very hard on all the freshmen. Whitney [Hayes], Michael [Biles]. They're all great players. I expect a lot out of them, and I let them know it. I've tried to show they some things, but they've gone out and made everyone respect us."
Boyle's biggest assist to date was the one in the NCAA final in 2001 that Prager cashed in for the Tigers' sixth title.
"I did a double-take because he was so open," Boyle says. "I held it so long, I almost cost him his angle to shoot at. I remember the seniors from that class pushing us. They wanted to win so badly. I remember coming so close in 2002 [a 13-12 loss to Syracuse in the finals]. I want to get back there again so badly."
After that it'll be off to either medical school or culinary school, depending on which direction his unpredictable mind takes. He is also looking to play in the MLL this summer.
"I always have confidence in the person I'm throwing the ball to," says Boyle. "When you play unselfishly, good things happen."
Except in the case of Ryan Boyle, where it has always meant great things for Princeton.