Cody Radziewicz grew up driving from his family’s home in nearby Manlius, New York to the Carrier Dome for Syracuse lacrosse games. As a kid, he’d attend SU camps and clinics and become friendly with some of the players. While watching them from the sidelines, he’d be part SU fan, part lacrosse player studying the game he loved.

He went to the Dome as often as he could, as long as he didn’t have a lacrosse game that day. Of all the games he watched, one stood out above the rest.

“I’ve always rooted for Johns Hopkins,” he said. “When I lived in Syracuse, I’d always go to their games, but this was my favorite game to go see when I was a kid. It was always so much fun to go watch.”

When it came time to pick schools, the Manlius native chose JHU. Radziewicz has emerged as an integral first-line midfielder fort the Blue Jays. He’s recorded four goals and one assist this year.

On Saturday, he’ll help lead No. 8 Johns Hopkins (3-2) against the third-ranked Orange (5-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast) at Homewood Field in Baltimore. While he didn’t go to SU, his sister, Alexa, plays for SU women’s lacrosse team. It’ll be his fourth game and first start against Syracuse, the team he grew up watching.

 

These two flags hang on the family’s portico during lacrosse season for Cody, who plays at Johns Hopkins and Alexa, who plays at Syracuse. Photo courtesy of Mark Radziewicz

 

“I would say it has as much meaning for anybody else when they play their hometown (team),” Radziewicz said. “… You don’t try to do anything too crazy. Just play your game and have fun.”

When Radziewicz began school at Christian Brothers Academy in Syracuse as a seventh grader, teachers led a time capsule activity. Students wrote their future goals on an index card then handed it in. As seniors, in 2013, they’d look back on what they had written.

On his index card, Radziewicz jotted down that he wanted to attend Johns Hopkins. Five years later, as a soon-to-be Blue Jay, he opened the envelope containing his former dream, which had become real.

“It was unbelievable,” his dad, Mark, said.

Around the time he filled out the capsule, he bought his first college hoodie. It read “Johns Hopkins.”

At CBA, the 6-foot, 180-pounder recorded more than 300 points in his four-year varsity career. He received offers from Duke, Loyola, Syracuse, Notre Dame and Cornell, where he first committed.

Former Syracuse four-time All-American and two-time national champion Ric Beardsley took the helm of CBA in 2013, at the dawn of Radziewicz’s senior season. He connected Radziewicz with the Johns Hopkins, Syracuse and Notre Dame coaching staffs.

Notre Dame, though, wanted him to reclassify a year down. Radziewicz said he wanted to “broaden my horizons a bit,” and eliminated UND and SU from contention. That left him with Hopkins.

“When things didn’t work out for him at Cornell,” Johns Hopkins head coach Dave Pietramala said, “we looked at it as an opportunity for us.”

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Radziewicz was one of just three freshmen at JHU in 2014 to play in all 16 games. Last season, two of Radziewicz’s 11 points helped the Blue Jays beat then-second-seeded Syracuse and advanced to the Final Four.

Beardsley has coached All-Americans and highly-coveted players, including some who have gone on to play at various Division I powers.

“Cody is the best player out of all of them,” Beardsley said.

Beardsley praised Radziewicz’s speed as one of his best attributes. Last month, Radziewicz trailed a North Carolina midfielder by about 10 yards. Both players were running toward midfield. By the time they reached the 30-yard line, Radziewicz had already caught the Carolina player.

“That’s a lot of f*cking speed,” Beardsley said.

After that game, Radziewicz was promoted to first midfield line. The Blue Jays haven’t lost since.

Even when he was being recruited, he made it clear he wanted a change of scenery.

“He wanted to try to experience something different,” Pietramala said. “He had kind of made that clear when we first started talking.”

Now, Radziewicz is where he always wanted to be. He’s found his place geographically and on his team.

Published on March 19, 2016 at 5:48 am

Contact Matthew: [email protected] | @MatthewGut21