Hartford lacrosse head coach looking towards future challenges
WEST HARTFORD, CT. (BVM) — From Amherst, Mass. to Hartford, Conn., the journey of University of Hartford’s men’s lacrosse head coach Ryan Martin has been a long one. Coach Martin is now entering his 17th-year of coaching lacrosse at the collegiate level, achieving long term success in the process.
In his younger days, Martin’s mother worked at the University of Massachusetts. It was at that time when he found his love for sports and, while growing up, he would find himself playing several different sports for several different teams. However, there was one sport in particular that the Amherst native would fall in love with: the sport of lacrosse.
Lacrosse was introduced to the Hawks’ head coach by his father who played the sport in college and who is now a member of the college lacrosse Hall of Fame. Lacrosse would become a pillar in Martin’s life as he went on to play the sport in high school at Amherst Regional High School and later, at Ithaca College. It was here where he pursued a degree in business and played the sport between 2001-2003; becoming a two-time All-American in that timespan.
“After graduating from Ithaca in 2003, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do,” Martin said. “I decided to put my business degree to use and worked as a recruiter for Aerotek in Arlington, Texas for one year. At that point, I decided to make the leap and get into coaching lacrosse at the college level.”
Martin’s career would take him to several schools that competed in many different conferences and divisions across several states. His first stop was at Hampden-Sydney College in Va. where he worked as assistant coach for the 2005 season.
Over the next few years, Martin would become an assistant coach at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in N.Y. for the 2006 season, before going on to Nazareth College in N.Y. where he served as the first assistant coach between 2007-2010. It was at Nazareth College where Martin got his masters degree, met his wife, won a few conference titles and even made it to a few NCAA tournaments.
In 2011, Martin received his first head coaching job at SUNY-Oswego in N.Y., holding that position until 2014. Finally, in 2016, the journey-man coach found a new home at his current Division I program, the University of Hartford.
Martin started off as the associate head coach for the program in 2016. It was in that same year he helped guide the Hawks to an America East Conference Title, knocking off the fourth best team in the country, the Albany Great Danes. Later taking over the head coaching role, Martin describes his experience so far as ‘filled with ups and downs.’
“I have had a great experience in my time at Hartford,” Martin said. “I have been blessed to work alongside some great fellow coaches and people here in the athletic department. I am very grateful for all the talented and dedicated Division I athletes that I have been able to help develop, and I am very proud of what they have been able to accomplish despite the vast challenges they have been faced within the last three years.”
The team has indeed faced a lot of challenges within recent times. With the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, along with the news of the school’s athletic programs transitioning to Division III from Division I, there’s no doubt that the Hartford Hawks have been in a tough spot lately. However, the veteran coach did express some hope on the situation as he talked about the future of his team.
“My hope is that we bring a great group back to West Hartford for next fall,” Martin said. “We have a special group of young men and families that have dedicated themselves completely to this University and Lacrosse program. They have excelled in the classroom, community, and competed hard on the lacrosse field. They have handled so much adversity this year, especially in the last month with the university making the announcement to move to Division III. Right now I am completely focused on our program having a last dance in Division I and writing our own ending.”
Since taking the role of head coach at the University of Hartford, Coach Martin and his coaching staff has developed two professional MLL players, turned his offense into the ranked offense in scoring percentage in NCAA Division I lacrosse in 2019, and has helped several players earn All-Conference, America East All-Academic Team, and America East Academic Honor Roll distinctions.
