Ryan Tierney etches his name in Hofstra history books
Like father, like son, Ryan Tierney has followed in the footsteps of his father, Seth, in their total commitment to the sport of lacrosse. While their time as part of the Hofstra men’s lacrosse program has been especially unique, the father-son dynamic shares the same philosophy: lacrosse on the field, family at home.
“There’s one rule that we set before I got here: we’re gonna leave it on the field,” Ryan Tierney said. “We’re going to talk about lacrosse only when we get on the field and then [as] soon as we get off the field after practice or a game, then we let it go. We go back to father and son.”
Before committing to Hofstra, Ryan Tierney’s collegiate career was boiled down to two schools. Playing at the University of Denver for his uncle Bill Tierney, or playing at Hofstra for his dad.
“The end of my junior year, I decided to commit to Hofstra,” Ryan Tierney said. “I walked upstairs to my parents’ bedroom and I said, ‘I don’t want to go through this process anymore. I know where I’m going, I want to go to Hofstra.’”
“The thing that trumps everything is we have an opportunity to do this together,” Seth Tierney said on Ryan’s decision. “There’re classrooms, there’s books, there’s teachers in every university. There’s a field and there’s a team everywhere you go. What isn’t there are the memories that [Ryan and I] can make together that will last a lifetime.”
While on their field, the relationship is the same as any other player, something Seth Tierney has tried to manage since Ryan first came to Hofstra.
“One of the administrators when Ryan first got here pulled me into his office and he just said, ‘You’re probably going to be harder on Ryan, and you can’t be. Then you’re going to flip over and you’re probably going to be softer on Ryan, and you can’t be,’” Seth Tierney said. “I had to manage that, and I wanted to manage it as best as I could.”
In five years with the Pride, Ryan Tierney has amassed 162 goals ranking first all-time in Hofstra history and tying the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) record. His 247 career points ranks first all-time in both Hofstra and CAA history.
“I’m happy and proud of the records that he’s broke. You’ll never hear either one of us talk about them because someone else is going to break them in years to come. Records are made to be broken,” Seth Tierney said. “If he’s helping a young kid out with shooting and my wife and I get a text about what type of person Ryan is and how he’s made an impact on their son. I’m thrilled and I’m humbled every time we get one of those texts.”
Ryan and Seth Tierney after breaking the CAA points and Hofstra goals record — Photo Courtesy of Hofstra Athletics
Even with the record to his name, Ryan Tierney now has his sights set on the CAA title.
“There’s always been that goal of achieving those records, but it’s just the goal of winning at the end,” Ryan Tierney said. “Very few teams can end their season on a win and we want to be one of them.”
After missing the CAA Tournament in 2019, the Pride is back in this season’s tournament as the No. 4 seed. This year the tournament will be held at Hofstra and the Pride will face the No. 1 seed, the University of Delaware.
“We want to keep pushing through this thing as far as we can go and hopefully play our best lacrosse [in] the next couple games,” Ryan Tierney said.
Making it to the tournament was not an easy task, however, all the Pride’s games came down to the wire at the tail end of the season. Hofstra found themselves behind Fairfield University before rallying for a win to keep their playoff hopes alive.
“It tells us that greatness is there. You’ve got to show up on time and we can’t allow teams to get that first jump on us anymore,” Ryan Tierney said. “We’ve been doing it all season and we’ve been we’ve been working on it, but we need to put our work to work. If we play like we play in the second half for the whole game, it’s a different game.”
The following day, the Pride awaited the results of the Drexel University and Towson University game. A Drexel win would guarantee the Pride a spot, but a Towson win would force a three-way tie with Hofstra, Towson and UMass, forcing the tiebreaker rules to decide who made it.
“I’m different than most people; I [didn’t] even want to watch the game. I don’t want the ups and the downs and stress for two hours that I really can’t control or contribute to,” Ryan Tierney said. “Whether it’s a good outcome or a bad outcome but we’re going to be there together as a team.”
The outcome was in fact good news for the Pride, as Drexel rallied to beat Towson, securing Hofstra’s spot in the tournament. Now, Ryan Tierney is looking to lead the Pride back to a championship before passing the leadership roles to the next group.
“I’m going to try to pass that torch on and have them live with no regrets,” Ryan Tierney said. “I want them to have fun, but I also want them to put in the work that’s needed to be great.”
While his time at Hofstra is winding down, the future for Ryan proposes new opportunities after being selected in the second round of the 2021 Premier Lacrosse League College Draft by the Whipsnakes.
“It’s a surreal feeling. You never really know because of what the teams need so you never really know who’s going where,” Ryan Tierney said. “Even the players that they predict, they don’t go, so it’s really crazy feeling. I’m really excited for that next chapter, but I don’t want to close the chapter on this one yet.”
“The 16th pick came up and when his name got announced as a parent when you look into your child’s eyes, and there’s talking without speaking,” Seth Tierney said. “That’s what my wife and I saw. We saw the excitement, we saw the culmination of 15 years of hard work to get to this point to get drafted.”
Although Ryan Tierney looks forward to what’s next, he’s ready to lead the Pride through the CAA Tournament. Regardless of the outcome, his name will forever be in the Hofstra and CAA record books.
“If he’s fortunate enough to make a dress squad for the Whipsnakes, you know there’s a good chance I’ll be sitting at the 50-yard line at the scorer’s table,” Seth Tierney said. “Either talking to the TV trucks or helping with the officials and I’ll be out in front row seats to watch his next is next phase of life.”
Seth Tierney added, “On a humorous note, he’s Coach Stagnitta’s problem now he’s not my problem anymore.”
Photo Courtesy of Adam Flash/The Hofstra Chronicle
