Baltimore, Md.—This spring marked midfielder Ryan DeSmit’s ’09 entry into an elite group of Friends athletes: The 12 Varsity Letter Club. Only seven Friends seniors have reached this milestone in the eight years since the program’s inception.

To be eligible, athletes must have played on varsity teams in three different sports during each of their four years in Upper School. DeSmit, who will pursue lacrosse at Towson University next year, earned his spot by lettering in soccer, basketball, and lacrosse.

DeSmit athletic honors at Friends School are numerous. He has earned Friends School Athletic Association (FSAA) awards in basketball and soccer. He’s a two-time winner of the Pieter J. DeSmit Award for sportsmanship, leadership, dedication and proficiency in soccer. (The award is named in honor of Ryan’s grandfather, a former Friends School athletic director and soccer coach.) He also has received All-City and All-MIAA honors three times in soccer, has played in three championship soccer matches and, last season, scored 36 goals and had 40 assists.  

As a guard for this year’s Varsity Basketball team, DeSmit a three-time co-captain, led the team in scoring–netting 16.1 points per game, 2 three-point shots, 2.6 assists, and 2.3 steals. He was second in rebounding, with 7.4 grabs, and 1.3 shots blocked, per game.

"Ryan is exceptionally gifted physically but it is his work ethic, mental toughness and competitive fire mental gifts that distinguish him as an athlete," says Varsity Basketball coach Brian Anglim. "After completing practice, Ryan was either shooting baskets or lifting weights–always striving to the best he could be."

DeSmit is also a team leader on the lacrosse field. Last year he led the attack in scoring, collecting 36 goals and 33 assists. This year, the Quakers will again look to DeSmit to lead them through a tough A Conference schedule. "Ryan is one of the most versatile lacrosse players at Friends," says Varsity Lacrosse Coach Rick Matthews. "He is equally valuable playing attack or midfield."

Off the athletic field and court, DeSmit is a member of the School chorus, the athletic booster club Students Supporting Athletics and is a participant in the Model United Nations. Like the other 12 Varsity Letter Winner Club members, he embodies the mission of Friends School to educate the whole child by encouraging students to stretch themselves in myriad ways—through the School’s vigorous academic curriculum, its competitive athletic and multimedia arts programs, and by attending weekly Quaker Meeting with fellow seniors and faculty members.

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Friends School of Baltimore, an independent, coeducational, college preparatory institution founded in 1784, offers students age four through grade 12 a rigorous academic program that fosters the values of peace, equality, community, truth and simplicity.