Baseball
Favorite athlete: Mike Trout
Favorite team: Philadelphia Eagles
Favorite memory competing in sports: My favorite memory competing in sports is when I won the Prep Legion state championship in 2021.
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: The funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports was probably my friend’s double celebration during our senior day game; the whole dugout was going crazy.
Music on playlist: Mostly country, I usually like listening to artists like Morgan Wallen and Zach Bryan.
Future plans: I plan to attend West Virginia University (Honors College) and study Accounting.
Words to live by: For me, the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of words to live by is a quote from J.J. Watt which states “Success isn’t owned. It’s leased. And Rent is due every day.”
One goal before turning 30: One goal I have before turning 30 is to travel to Italy.
One thing people don’t know about me: I am a pretty good cornhole player.
By GORDON GLANTZ
There are those who are born on third base and think they hit a triple.
That is not what Council Rock South senior Ryan Hickey - whose road to the hot corner was strewn with obstacles - is all about.
However, the final destination – a senior season to remember with his longtime comrades – was worth it all.
“He had to work his way up through the ranks,” said CR South coach Greg Paprocki. “He wasn’t one of those kids that played right away as an underclassman. He had to wait for his time. When his number was called, he was more than ready.”
Hickey, who battled various injuries throughout his career with the Golden Hawks, became an everyday player on Paprocki’s lineup card as the starting third baseman and generally hitting anywhere from to fifth to seventh.
Although he had to wear a sleeve to protect his bad knee, the season was relatively free of injury.
That doesn’t mean it wasn’t without a “here we go” moment.
Early in the season, against rival Council Rock North, Hickey squared around to bunt and took one the head.
Recalled Paprocki: “Many people, myself included, thought that was the end for him, at least for that game. But, he cleared concussion protocol and – somehow, someway – came back up and he gets the bunt down. The bunt led to an error and a run.
“If that doesn’t tell you what kind of a competitor he is – how fearless, and what kind of a teammate he is – I don’t know what will. That’s just one example of who he is that I will remember forever.”
What Hickey will take away from his senior season was that the Golden Hawks got to the district playoffs for the first time this decade and won a game (over Great Valley) before falling to North Penn in the second round.
“It was the first time we won a playoff game since 2017,” said Hickey. “It was great. We won, 16-0, against Great Valley. All of our bats came together. Our pitching was great. It was amazing.”
Since the final out of the North Penn loss, Hickey has had time to reflect on the pros and cons.
“It’s bittersweet,” said Hickey, who is moving on to the University of West Virginia honors college to major in accounting and is likely done with athletic competition above the intramural level. “I have more freedom now to do more things, but I’m definitely going to miss playing with my friends every day. It’s going to be rough without them.”
It is with many of the same teammates that Hickey experienced winning the state legion title in 2021, after having to beat the same team twice on the final day.
“All those kids are kids I played with for a lot of years,” he said. “To be able to do it with them was just amazing.”
While a seamless transition to CR South would have been ideal, that was not in the cards for Karen and Shane Hickey’s middle child and only boy.
“It was definitely tough,” said Hickey. “The last couple of years, I’ve dealt with some injuries.”
Those injuries included a partial tear in his elbow, a season-ending concussion, a sprained ankle and knee issues.
Nonetheless, he never considered taking his bat and ball and going home.
“I didn’t ever really question myself,” said Hickey. “I always knew I wanted to make it back, but the injuries made it hard – especially with my arm. I wasn’t sure how bad it was going to be. When it came back as a partial tear, and something that I knew I could work through physical therapy for, it was an opening for me. With my knee, it was something that never healed. I still feel pain in it, right up until this day, but I just knew I had to get back because I knew I wanted to be a part of this.”
As a primary result of injuries, the only tangible playing time he received was as a relief pitcher as a junior before nailing down the third base job as a senior.
“It was tough, working through it all,” said Hickey. “Going into this year, being an everyday starter, definitely took some work. I stayed healthy this year, which was good, because it was definitely a rough time before that.”
When it came down to doing the work needed, that was ever an issue for Hickey, who gave up soccer and basketball to focus just on baseball once in high school.
“Ryan has been part of the program for four years,” said Paprocki. “He is just about as hard of a worker as I have ever been around – not only as a coach, but also as a player. His drive and consistency, on a day to day basis, is so impressive.
“He is also a super respectful kid, and he is incredibly coachable.”
While he credits physical therapy for getting him back onto the diamond, Hickey became a devoted gym rat.
While he didn’t add a ton of bulk to his frame (6-0, 190), Hickey said he became stronger and more athletic from pumping iron.
That was evidenced when he jolted a home run this past season.
“I think my body felt so much better from being in the weight room,” said Hickey. “I just felt so much stronger. This past year, I hit a home run. I credit that to all the hard work that I put into it. Working in the weight room helped me to get bigger and stronger, and it made me a better athlete.
“I think it was really important. Before high school, I never worked out. Once I got introduced to all that stuff, I couldn’t stay out of the weight room. It was also just a great experience, being in there with the team.”
Theory of Positivity
According to Paprocki, Hickey’s diligence made him a natural team leader, albeit more by example than as a vocal one.
“I have never seen the kid have a bad day, I really haven’t,” said the coach. “He is somebody that everybody respects, all the way through the program. That’s from the freshman level all the through. He’s just the complete package. He’s a nice kid, and a great person.”
Paprocki acknowledges that injuries played a role in Hickey’s offseason diligence, but he is also aware that the work ethic is like an inherent trait.
“But, what was most impressive to me, was that he only knows one speed,” the Rock South coach said. “All he knows is hard work. It is instilled in him, and it is just part of his personality. His drive and effort is so consistent. I never saw him take a rep off.”
Complete Package
Rounding out the “complete package” is Hickey as a student in the classroom and a citizen around the school’s hallways.
Hickey, who has challenged himself with AP and honors classes and boasts a well-earned 4.3 GPA, is a member of several honors societies.
“Ever since my freshman year, I just tried hard to stay on top of things,” said Hickey about his academics. “I wanted to get into the honors clubs and stuff like that.”
Added Paprocki: “He is also very serious about his work, and he’s very focused. He’s a tremendous student that is great in the classroom and also on the field.”
When it came to choosing a school, it came down to two schools. While Hickey had nothing against Tennessee, the visit and tour at West Virginia made the decision an easy one.
“It was a place that I could definitely see myself at for the next four years,” said Hickey, who wanted to thank his coaches and teammates through the years, but especially his parents and sisters (Megan, a soccer player at Pitt-Greensburg, and Kaitlin, who is still in middle school).
He plans to follow the trail blazed by some older cousins and major in accounting.
“I always thought it would be something I might be good at,” said Hickey, who takes an accounting class at CR South now. “I was always pretty good at math.”
To his coach, the number that matters most was 110 – as in the effort Hickey always put forth.
“He is a kid who does everything the right way,” said Paprocki. “He never missed an offseason workout, which is something that we value a ton.
“In this day and age, kids have a lot of options. They have personal trainers. They have travel teams. But Ryan was there for every single workout, every single day. He always gave us 110 percent effort. He is just the epitome of what you look for in a teammate.”
And, although he may have only been a one-year starter, this will be the lasting legacy of Ryan Hickey.
“I always tell these guys that, if you give 110 percent every single day, you are not going to have any regrets,” said Paprocki. “Ryan did that for sure. I would think that Ryan is not going to leave here with many regrets, just because of the effort he put in and how much pride he took. That’s in the classroom, the offseason workouts and all the way up and onto the baseball field.”
