Head Coach Jon Lombardo
Coach Lombardo is in his first year (2019-20) at St. Mary's Ryken after spending 7 years as an assistant coach at the collegiate level, helping Lynchburg to the 2015 National Championship Game. He also serves as the Athletic Director at SMR.
" I am most passionate about creating a transformational experience through developing championship culture that will not only prepare our young men for college, but for life. That is my purpose & vision as an educator; impact lives through who we are, what we do & how we do it."- Coach Lombardo
Coaching & Recruiting Philosophy
"The foundation of SMR Lacrosse and my philosophy as an educator is to create relationships that are fueled by the 4 Commitments of SMR Lacrosse and our process. We are looking for young men who care deeply enough to exert maximum effort, welcome the challenge of learning genuine toughness and have a burning passion for competing in ALL they do & love the game of lacrosse. If they embrace that, they will open doors of opportunity while discovering the best version of themselves."
The 4 Commitments of a SMR Lacrosse Player
1. Academics- Our team GPA in Semester 1 of 2020-21 was 3.53. Coach Lombardo collects hard copies of grades from every player individually at every interim, quarter & semester. We also have a team study hall during the day & individual academic meetings with Coach for Academic Progress Updates to hold every player accountable to their personal best. The team expectation is a 3.5 GPA.
2. KNIGHT Club Testing- Starting in the fall we utilize our full time Wellness Director & Strength Coach and our state of the art facilities to prepare our athletes for our testing. The fitness tests include Bench Press, Pull Ups, Squats, 3x 300 Yard Shuttles & a partner passing stick work circuit of 500 touches. Those who meet or exceed all expectations are given a special shirt to wear to practice/workouts to acknowledge the effort & commitment to our culture & process.
Why S&C training year round? First, the number 1 determination of readiness for a freshman collegiate lacrosse player is preparation in the weight room & conditioning. Secondly, and most importantly, lifting weights & conditioning to a standardized expectation takes time, discomfort & commitment. It also leads to personal, mental & physical growth, while creating a winning edge & culture within the team. Experiencing a challenge and learning to pursue greatness in something you love to do is a valuable skill for ALL people, not just athletes. We embrace this because it is not easy. The goals we set are intentionally challenging, but our actions are consistent. This allows us to discover the qualities within us that we need to be champions in life!
3. Passion- Passion is the key to great achievement. We need to outwork & overachieve, but to do so, we need intrinsically motivated young men. To be driven from within, you must follow your passion. We want our young men to love playing lacrosse and to care deeply about representing SMR and our program.
4. Be the BEST Version of you- This is the end goal. To help each young man discover what is the best version of himself. We help our boys through self-discovery, challenge, reflection & taking ownership over their experience as an SMR Student-Athlete.
St. Mary's Ryken Lacrosse History & Tradition
The program began in 1989 and was started by former All-American Goalie, Coach John Sothoron. Coach Sothoron played under Coach Dick Edell at Towson State University. Over the next two and half decades, "Coach John" would take a school with no prior knowledge of lacrosse, to building a culture & identity where SMR became a "lacrosse" school. Coach Sothoron's teams often featured players that had little experience, but were exceptional athletes. The common denominator was HOW they played. SMR was known for discipline, toughness & a blue collar attitude that was willing to compete toe to toe with any program in the country.
Coach Sothoron would go on to not only win the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference Championship, but become a legend in Southern Maryland. Under Coach Sothoron, SMR became known for consistently producing some of the best players in the Mid-Atlantic Region.
Boy's Lacrosse Locker Room inside the Donnie Williams Center
Strength & Conditioning Facility Inside the Donnie Williams Center & SMR Stadium
Resources to Take Ownership Of!
Academics- We offer a unique blend of 26 AP Courses and are proud of our Scholars Program with curriculum from nationally accredited Project Lead the Way. The Scholars Program areas of student include Biomedical Science, Computer Science, Engineering and many more! All of this is on campus at SMR, in our college like atmosphere so you can not only discover your passion, but begin the journey of pursuing your dream!
Athletics- SMR is a member of the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference. Not only is this an elite lacrosse conference, but across all sports. The WCAC is one of the best high school athletic conferences in the country, receiving national recognition each year in all sports.
Maximizing Resources at SMR- At SMR, our lacrosse student-athletes have access to 2 full time Athletic Trainers, 1 team Doctor, 1 on campus full time Strength & Conditioning Coach with other part time staff, customized by sport & player specific training programs through Team Buildr Software, film breakdown/editing access through hudl & obviously the elite WCAC schedule we are able to play. We also participate in various fall/summer tournaments such as Inside Lacrosse Invitational & The National High School Lacrosse Showcase. Everything we do is to create a great experience for our young men as well as expose them to a collegiate student-athlete experience. Our program imitates that of an NCAA program in terms of facilities, resources & opportunities we offer our players so they can take advantage through their preparation.
Enrollment, Admissions & Application Information!
St. Mary's Ryken High School has a tuition. We believe SMR is what we call an INVESTMENT in your child academically, athletically & socially. You are paying for a service provided that is going to be a transformational experience. Your son will discover who he is, what he loves & how he can springboard to opportunities of pursuing his passion.
There are ways to offset the cost of tuition. The best way is to have great grades & test scores on the High School Placement Test. We do not offer athletic scholarship money. However, academic & merit based scholarships and need based financial aid are available for those who apply & qualify. It is critical that you apply for scholarship competitions & financial aid through TADS, if this is a concern for you. That is the most crucial piece of information. We have the BEST Admissions Team who are eager to answer questions!
We are extremely excited about the vision of St. Mary's Ryken and the Lacrosse program moving forward. We believe this is going to become a transformational experience for all of the young men who commit to the way of life & culture we are building. In return, our boys will discover their passion & receive a world of opportunity through the impact of what we do, how we do it and why we do it. There is not a more fitting time in our lives to see the value in being a part of a culture, having a set of values & committing oneself to a process larger than the individual. It is my goal that our student-athletes commit to this process, while creating the greatest experience & relationships in these four years. Thank you for your time. Roll Knights!- Coach Lombardo
Credits:
Mrs. Brandy Watson