Baseball, Basketball
Favorite athlete: Tim Tebow
Favorite team: Phillies
Favorite memory competing in sports: Going to Disney my sophomore year with the baseball team.
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: While pitching, a ball was hit right back at me, and I deflected it with my glove. I then spun around in a circle and caught it with my bare hand.
Music on iPod: All types of music but mostly country
Future plans: To attend a university in pursuit of an engineering degree.
Words to live by: “The important thing is this: To be able at any moment to sacrifice what we are for what we could become.”
One goal before turning 30: Having my first patent.
One thing people don’t know about me: I am a huge Harry Potter nerd.
By GORDON GLANTZ
Watch a Hatboro-Horsham baseball game that is going according to plan, and you are bound to see head coach Pete Moore send Ryan Murphy to the mound – typically from first base or the outfield - to close out a win.
Murphy will rise to the challenge with a fierce determination in his eyes and a fire in his gut.
What is not as visible is the aching in his heart and uncertainty in his soul.
Murphy knows there is a chance that every pitch he throws and every at-bat he takes brings him one pitch and one at-bat closer to the end of a baseball career that he has enjoyed his whole life with many of his fellow seniors as teammates.
“There are definitely a lot of emotions,” said Murphy, the Univest Featured Male Athlete of the Week. “I realize this might be the last time I play baseball, so I just try to go out there and give it my all every time.
“There might not be much time left, and I want to leave it all on the field.”
The operative word is “might,” as he is closing in on high school graduation without a final determination.
A top-flight student with a weighted GPA of 5.8 and a SAT score of 1940, he hopes to study engineering and has already been accepted to Georgia Tech and Florida, two schools with top-flight programs in that major.
However, playing baseball at those schools – other than at maybe the club or intramural level – would not be possible, considering that they are major Division I programs.
Murphy could easily play at the Division II level, but most schools don’t offer the academic environment he is seeking. Schools like Lehigh and Lafayette would be outside possibilities, and the door remains open for Division III schools like Haverford and Swarthmore.
As Murphy put it, the whole process can be a bit “confusing,” but he has plenty of support from his family – parents Frank and Karen and sisters Lauren and Claire – and Moore.
“He and I had a good conversation about it the other day,” said Moore. “It’s a tough decision for an 18-year-old kid to make. He wants to put himself in a position where he can get the best education that he can.
“He has a strong GPA and SAT scores, but baseball is still a big part of him. It’s just a matter of the right academics and the right school coming along.”
Murphy came to the area in second grade and formed a deep and lasting bond with many of his current teammates, coming up through the ranks together.
As a sophomore, on the junior varsity level, Murphy had all the makings of being the future ace of the staff and relished the opportunity.
After his first start as a junior, he felt a pain in his back. He tried to work through it, but to no avail. He was summarily shut down for a good stretch of the season.
“I’m not sure how long I missed, but it felt like forever,” recalled Murphy. “It was good to get back into it after that, but it was tough going through that.”
When he returned, the team was rolling. Moore found a place in the lineup for his bat, but the rotation was set in stone.
He did fine hitting, checking in at .375, but was off the radar for college coaches in a sport where recruiting is very hit-or-miss and more a matter of good timing – or, in this case, bad luck.
A Good Role to Have
This year, Moore found the ideal role for Murphy, and he is flourishing. He starts on the mound on weeks when there are extra games on the docket – an inevitable fact when springtime rains cause washouts and backed-up schedules – and otherwise plays first base or the outfield and comes in to close out wins.
“He is the kind of guy you want out there at the end of a game,” said Moore, who added that Murphy’s fast ball clocks in the mid-80s when he is closing, as opposed to the low 80s when he is starting, and keeps hitters off-balance with a strong change-up. “He pounds the zone. He wants the ball in any situation. Ryan has that attitude.
“As a coaching staff, we appreciate the value he brings to us. Everybody wants to be the starting pitcher, and Ryan is no different, but he is just fearless (as a closer). The look in his eyes, the tempo he sets - he’s just a competitor. He’s not afraid of any situation.”
Murphy, as shown in a recent start against Pennsbury last week, still has the chops as a starter, but he relishes being the guy who comes in a shuts the door.
“Absolutely,” he confirmed. “Anytime I step on the field, I want to dominate. I love when I have the ball. I know I can control the game.
“It’s a good role to have. I like doing that. It’s a mentality. I want to get in there and get after it.”
And he also has the right attitude when he comes to being a leader.
“We have four captains, and he’s not officially on the list, but he is also leader,” said Moore. “He is someone the other guys all look up to.
“He is a great kid with a great personality. He’s a fun kid, with a high intellect.”
Moore added that Murphy “leads by example” but can also “be vocal” when the need arises.
“As a pitcher, it puts you in a role of leadership,” said Murphy. “I’ve always found myself in leadership roles, and I always try to motivate others.”
On a senior-heavy team, it is more a matter of friendship than mentorship.
“The fact of the matter is, if we play our game, we’re going to do well,” added the 6-1 Murphy, who also played basketball for the Hatters as “more of a way to stay in shape” until baseball rolled around.
“The whole baseball team - they’re like brothers to me. We have a close bond. When I pitch, I know all those guys have my back.”
And that extends to the coaching staff.
“Coach Moore has been awesome,” said Murphy. “And Andy Noga, the pitching coach, took me under his wing as soon as I got here. He has moved up with me at every level, and he is a big part of the Hatter program.”
Home Grown
On the home front, sports were great – his dad played football and baseball in high school before moving on to Duke – but academics came first.
“That always been the most important thing,” said Murphy, whose eldest sister, Lauren, attended Florida and now lives in Jacksonville while Claire is a senior at Virginia Tech. “It’s been the driving factor. Sports comes second.
With his grades never being an issue, Frank and Karen Murphy, both Florida natives, were always behind their son on the diamond.
“Oh, absolutely,” he confirmed. “My mom is my biggest fan. The most deciding factor has is my dad. He has taught me everything about baseball.”
And he was always there with a constructive critique.
“That’s why I excelled,” said Murphy, who has been active in the National Honors Society while also getting some time away from competitive sports in the school’s Ski Club. “I was always motivated to do better.”
The question remains is if he will be able to continue on his academic path without giving up the game that has been such a big part of his life.
“I have a love for the game,” he said. “On the flip side, I’m staying open-minded and keeping my options open. (Florida and Georgia Tech) are top engineering schools. My sisters went to big schools, so I have always been around a big-school atmosphere. Right now, I’m open to anything, really.
“It’s definitely been a confusing process. Getting hurt my junior year didn’t help. I’ve always been a student-athlete first, but it has always been my dream to play baseball in college.”
