Boys GameBreaker Lacrosse Camp at the University of Hartford

Ryan Martin enters his fourth season as head coach of the Hartford men’s lacrosse team in 2020. Named the 14th coach in program history on June 2, 2016, Martin spent the previous two seasons on the Hawks’ coaching staff as the program’s top assistant in 2015 and 2016.

Joining the staff as the Hawks’ offensive coordinator and goalie coach prior to the start of the 2015 season, Martin was quickly promoted to Associate Head Coach in 2016. That season, he helped pilot the Hawks to a historic run in the America East Championship as the Hawks became the first No. 4 seed in America East history to win the conference championship and earn an NCAA Tournament berth.

Hartford finished with a 4-11 record in 2019, but ended the season strong with wins in three of its final five games. That season, Martin helped build the man-up offense into one of the best in the nation, as it finished the campaign ranked No. 7 in NCAA Division I in scoring percentage (.441) with 1.7 extra-man opportunities per game.

The Hawks have seen strong growth on both ends of the field since Martin joined the coaching staff. He was responsible for the growth of Dylan Jinks (’19), who graduated as one of the top scorers in Hartford program history. Registering his 100th career goal during his senior campaign, Jinks, who was the America East’s Rookie of the Year in 2016, finished his career ranked No. 6 in points (176), No. 10 in goals (103) and No. 5 in assists (73).

Under Martin’s watch, Ryan Vanderford graduated in 2018 as one of the top goalies in program history, ranking No. 3 all-time in saves, No. 7 in saves per game, No. 5 in goals-against average and No. 2 in career victories.

A total of 17 players have gone on to earn All-Conference distinction from the America East since Martin was named head coach, including three First Team, five Second Team, two All-Rookie and seven All-Academic Team members.

In addition, two Hawks have taken their careers beyond college to the professional rankings since Martin’s arrival. The Atlanta Blaze of the Major League Lacrosse (MLL) drafted 2018 graduate Griffin Feiner, who closed out his career with the third-most goals in program history, in April of that year. Seven months later, the MLL’s Florida Launch selected faceoff specialist Dylan Protesto after he graduated as the program’s all-time leader in faceoff winning percentage.


The 2016 season was one for the books for the Hawks men’s lacrosse program, as Hartford posted the second-most wins in program history (11-7) while becoming the first team in America East history to win the conference tournament title as a four seed. The Hawks knocked off top-seeded UAlbany — which was ranked fourth in the nation — in the semifinals before earning the program’s second berth to the NCAA Tournament with a 17-16 win over Vermont in the championship game two days later.

Martin has been heavily involved in overseeing the team’s academics and community service outreach. Since his arrival, 14 Hawks have been named to the America East All-Academic Team, including seven under his tenure as head coach. Most recently, Martin had a department-best 25 of his student-athletes earn America East Academic Honor Roll status for achieving at least a 3.0 GPA, with 15 of those players receiving Commissioner’s Honor Roll distinction (3.5+ GPA).

This past season, Jinks became just the third Hawk in program history to be named a Scholar All-American by the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA)/Warrior and New Balance. He joined Chris Duffy (2017) and Tate Klidonas (2014) in earning the prestigious award.

In addition, Hartford has increased its footprint in the community through Team Impact, Habitat for Humanity, Junior Achievement and the annual “Stache for Cash” fundraising initiative.

Martin has been on the college coaching scene for more than 14 years, having spent four seasons as head coach at SUNY Oswego (2011-14). Prior to Oswego, he enjoyed a four-year stint as an assistant coach at Nazareth College (2007-10). Martin began his coaching career as an assistant at Hampden Sydney College in 2005 before landing at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 2006, where he was named interim head coach.

During his time at SUNY Oswego, Martin piloted the Lakers to back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 1996-97. Highlighting his stint at Nazareth were two Empire 8 Championships and NCAA Division III Tournament berths in 2007 and 2009. In addition, Martin coached eight USILA All-Americans, two Empire 8 Players of the Year and four to USILA Scholar All-America Team selections at Nazareth. He was also a finalist for the National Division III Assistant Coach of the Year in his final season with the Golden Flyers.

A native of Amherst, Mass., Martin was a standout goalie at Ithaca College. In three seasons with the Bombers, he was twice named a USILA Division III All-American in 2002 and 2003. Martin was also a three-time Empire 8 All-Conference Team selection, earning Second Team accolades as a sophomore before enjoying first-team honors in his final two seasons (2002, 2003). In addition, he was recognized as the Empire 8 Player of the Year in 2002, leading Ithaca to the Final Four of the NCAA Division III Tournament that season.