SuburbanOneSports.com recognizes a male and female featured athlete each week. The awards, sponsored by Univest, are given to seniors of good character who are students in good standing that have made significant contributions to their teams. Selections are based on nominations received from coaches, athletic directors and administrators.
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Female Athlete (Week of March 12, 2015)
Alynna Williams has spent a lifetime listening to people tell her she was “too short” or “too small.” The Plymouth Whitemarsh senior’s response to those trying to place limitations on her was immediate – she went out and proved them wrong. “I love when people tell me, ‘You’re too short’ or ‘You can’t do this,’” Williams said. “It just creates more of a drive for me to prove them wrong. It makes me work harder. I’d rather they say that to me. It just encourages me more.” The 5-1 dynamo might be the smallest player on the basketball court, but don’t be fooled. “What Alynna lacks in size, she more than makes up for in quickness,” PW coach Daniel Dougherty said. “She has an incredibly quick first step. The other part is when you are a little bit shorter, you have to be able to extend your range, and she has tremendous range on her three-point shot, so she can draw you out to make you come out and play her. If you don’t, she can shoot a three over top of you. If you do come out to play her, she has the speed and the moves to go past you.”
Williams certainly had the last laugh on those who suggested she was too short to play basketball when she accepted a five-year full scholarship to play the sport at Philadelphia University. Williams credits her success to a simple philosophy she learned from her father, Wallace Williams. “My dad always told me – you’ve got to do what other people are not willing to do,” she said. “I didn’t really understand that at a young age, but I just knew that my brother was up every morning before I woke up. He was at the gym for hours, came back and watched YouTube videos, and the next day he did it over again.” Her brother – Michael Brown, who is six years her senior – reaped the benefits for his tireless efforts by earning a football scholarship to Saint Francis. Alynna followed in her brother’s footsteps and has been making daily trips to the gym since she was in seventh grade. “Some days I wouldn’t feel like getting up, and my dad would knock on my door and say, ‘Come on, you’ve got to get up,’” she said.
The summer after her sophomore year, coaches from Philly U came to watch her play. They liked what they saw but had several suggestions. Williams eagerly took their suggestions to heart, and her improvement was apparent. When she made a visit to Philly U the following winter, the then PW junior received the offer of a full scholarship. “It was honestly unreal,” Williams said. “I remember it like it was yesterday.” The senior standout had a prolific career at PW, finishing 10th all-time in program history with 936 points despite missing all except four games of her freshman season with an injury. “She’s been the leader not only in points but has been a leader on the team,” Dougherty said. “She’s the kind of player you wish you had more of, not only in skills but that coach-ability concept, and she’s just an all-around good kid.”
An honor roll student, Williams plans to major in occupational therapy. This spring she is competing for PW’s track team, but basketball is her first love, and the opportunity to play at Division 2 powerhouse Philly U is a dream come true. “Trust me, I think about it every day, and I couldn’t be more thankful and grateful,” she said.
To read Williams’ complete profile, please click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/female/alynna-williams-0051431
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Male Athlete (Week of March 12, 2015)
An old-school football fan, Ryan Fitzpatrick learned about the game’s greats from his father. In particular, the Hatboro-Horsham senior always idolized Chicago Bears’ Hall of Fame running back Gale Sayers. Fitzpatrick calls it “ironic” that he found himself battling back from a knee injury in the same manner as the Kansas Comet, whose autographed picture sits by his bedside. While Sayers’ first serious knee injury occurred against the San Francisco 49ers in the ninth game of the 1969 NFL season, Fitzpatrick’s was a much less glamorous setting. It happened nine months ago in a 7-on-7 tournament game against Allentown Central Catholic at Souderton where he went down trying to make an awkward hook block. “It felt like my shin went through my left knee,” he said. The results of an MRI two weeks later showed a torn ACL.
The knee was repaired by Eagles’ orthopedic surgeon Peter F. DeLuca, M.D., but a long-awaited senior football season with the teammates he had grown up with was lost. And so, it seemed, were the dreams of playing college football for Fitzpatrick, who had been receiving interest from PSAC, Patriot League and Ivy league schools as an outside linebacker/safety. “I didn’t think I would ever play again,” he said. While he is a well rounded enough young man to have eventually made a truce with the reality of not playing again, H-H coach Mike Kapusta knows it would have been a loss to the game itself. “Ryan is a talented player who possesses great speed, agility, strength and explosiveness,” the Hatters’ coach said. “He is an aggressive player that thrives in competitive situations on both sides of the ball. Also a successful student, Ryan’s dedication and work ethic have been tremendous.”
Fitzpatrick stayed with his football team last fall, attending both games and practices. “Although unable to contribute on the field, he provided leadership and experience in the locker room and on the sidelines,” Kapusta said.
When college offers dried up to just some preferred walk-on feelers from Division III programs, he spent long nights at the computer, reaching out to schools, letting them know that he was an all-league linebacker who was out with a torn ACL. “Over half of them didn’t answer,” he said. Then he heard from Central Connecticut State University head coach Peter Rossomando. There was enough interest to offer Fitzpatrick a chance as a preferred walk-on with an opportunity to earn a scholarship for the Division One program. “We went up for a visit, and I liked the system,” he said, adding that more money toward an eventual full scholarship will be added the healthier he looks.
Football is just one small piece of Fitzpatrick’s life. The list of his school activities takes up two pages on his college resume. Highlights include stints as class vice president and president. After serving as regional secretary for the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) last year, he now serves as Region 20 president. “My teammates tease me about being so involved,” said Fitzpatrick, who has found himself at the epicenter of the student cheering section at basketball games since his sophomore year. “Most football players don’t get involved in too much else other than football. I think I helped bring a new culture to Hatboro-Horsham. The school spirit thing was cool again.” Fitzpatrick, an intern for St. Rep. Todd Stephens, is going into school undeclared but plans to study business with a positive goal toward law school. “I think I want to go law school with the idea of becoming a lawmaker,” he said.
To view Fitzpatrick’s complete profile, please click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/male/ryan-fitzpatrick-0051432
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