Ries’ heart and soul driving Springfield forward

RIDLEY TWP. >> Matt Ries’ short frame makes him tough to pick out of a crowd. But once you find him, the stark difference between him and his fellow high schoolers stands out.

His compact stature is packed with muscle, more like a coach’s than the average high school lacrosse player’s. He exudes uncommon maturity for his age, whether he’s organizing teammates for a game of bowling on a Sunday evening or sorting players in the box as they shuttle on and off the field. And there’s something ineffable about his demeanor, a seriousness that gives way to outbursts of humor that his friends revere.

Whether he and his teammates are bonding on a laid back evening or engrossed in battle on the field, Ries’ presence is significant. Within the Springfield community, he’s embodied the bonds that unite the town’s core of families and the outpouring of support that it is capable of.

“That’s probably the strongest kid I’ve ever met in my entire life,” Springfield midfielder Zac Methlie said Sunday.

In the eight months since the loss of his father, Ries’ situation epitomizes the family spirit that has carried Springfield to such heights, from last spring’s District One title to a second straight PIAA tournament appearance that starts Wednesday with a trip to Lake Lehman High School to meet District 2 champion Delaware Valley.

“We always talk about family on our team, and the guys really, really stick together and buy into that philosophy,” coach Tom Lemieux said. “… That’s just great for our community. And this is a really great place to be.”

Ries and his family have leaned on the community to a degree few could’ve imagined. It began last September when Ries’ father, John, passed away unexpectedly. That tragedy sent shockwaves through the community, which rallied to the side of Ries, his mother Missy and younger sister Laura, a sophomore at Cardinal O’Hara.

The response from neighbors and family friends was instantaneous. They arranged homemade meals to be delivered four days a week for months, tapering off just a few weeks ago. They offered their time and homes to Laura and Matt for any kind of distraction to help them cope, even if it was for just a few hours.

“Springfield is a really small place, and the kids all grew up with each other, whether it was from first grade or kindergarten,” said Barb Spence, a close friend of the Ries family whose sons James (junior) and Jack (freshman) are on Springfield’s lacrosse team. “When anything happens to anyone, everyone takes it to heart.”

“All the kids on the football team and lacrosse team have been like a second family, so it hasn’t been as hard as I thought it would be,” Matt Ries said. “All the kids on the team are looking out for me.”

Sports became Ries’ refuge. He’d spend his days engaging in any kind of athletic activity he could scrounge up enough teammates for. James Spence, one of Ries’ oldest friends, would have him over for fiddle lacrosse in the backyard, pickup hoops games, touch football, anything that got them out and laughing another day away.

“It just took our minds off of everything,” James Spence said. “And it really kind of just gave us all something to look forward to for the weekends and just have fun with and kind of lose track of everything that happens in life.”

Ries’ most vivid memory in the aftermath of his dad’s passing was the Cougars’ next football game, the day of a funeral that drew hundreds of mourners from the town to support his family. Garnet Valley romped past the Cougars, 34-18, on a windy, rainy evening. But the game meant more to Ries than the scoreboard could tabulate.

“I remember every play, everybody coming up to me — because that was the first time they saw me all week — everybody coming up to me, saying that they were playing for me,” Ries said.

The gym has become a respite for Ries, a place to escape for a few hours. In the fall, he’d regularly go from school to football practice, then get in extra reps at the HealthPlex, sometimes not coming home until after 10 p.m.

The football sessions bled into lacrosse preseason, where the Cougars’ locker room took the baton. And once the season officially dawned, Lemieux’s loaded calendar of activities filled the hours, from practices to pizza dinners to the now traditional Memorial Day Weekend slate — closing down MacDade Bowl Sunday night after two hours on the lanes, followed by practice Monday morning rewarded by pizza and watching the NCAA final on TV at Lemieux’s house.

All that’s gone on has steeled the connections between the players.

“I was never particularly close to Ries before this year, but something like that drew me toward him, just to see how he reacted to all of it and his character,” Methlie said. “… He just always came ready to work. No matter what, he was always pushing forward, always had a positive attitude when he could’ve just shut down and walked away from everything. He didn’t, and he put his heart and soul into everything he did, and look where it’s got him.”

Ries’ determination and resilience has been rewarded on the field. He played sparingly as an offensive midfielder last year, but he’s blossomed into one of the area’s best defensive short-stick mids this year, his tenacity on the ball filling a vital cog in the Cougars’ hard-nosed machine. He’s also the heart and soul of the Cougars, a constant reminder of what toughness and dedication can produce.

Ries has surmounted that adversity without losing himself. Those closest to him in the 15-man junior class that is the driving force behind Springfield’s success always get a boost from his sense of humor. Barb Spence is most struck by Ries’ concern for others, particularly her youngest, Jack.

It’s part of Ries’ enduring thank you to those around him for all the support they’ve offered.

“It’s kind of just surreal that a kid could be that strong and want to get his mind off things, but want to continue working and playing the sport that he loved, even though he was going through all these other battles somewhere else,” Methlie said. “It was just really amazing to see him work that hard.”