RJ Wyrick is a standout defenseman on the ADVNC Sacramento & NDP ‘23 squads committed to realizing his dream of playing DI lacrosse at Virginia Military Institute beginning in the Fall of 2023.

RJ grew up in Folsom, CA. He played soccer, baseball, basketball, and football as a kid and didn’t pick up a lacrosse stick until 6th grade.

“One of my prior football coaches, Jim Goldsmith, who also coached the Sacramento ADVNC lacrosse team, invited me to play in a lacrosse tournament in San Francisco because they needed some additional players,” RJ said. “I had never played lacrosse before and had no knowledge of the game or the rules.  I played short stick defense and found that I really enjoyed the game.”

“The weather at that first tournament was miserable” said Kelly Wyrick, RJ’s mom.  “Despite the weather and having never played before, RJ did great and had a good time. The game was fast moving, unlike baseball, and that was exciting for him.”

That tournament was in January and by the time spring came around, RJ decided to play lacrosse instead of baseball.  “It was my fault,” Rex Wyrick, RJ’s dad joked. “For over a year, RJ had been begging me to play lacrosse instead of baseball and I finally gave in. He’s always been a good athlete and had the skill set to play defense in lacrosse. The footwork was already there, so it was an easy transition.”

“I started playing lacrosse at my local rec league, Folsom Lacrosse,” RJ said.  “It was a lot of fun because I got to play with all my friends. At first, I played every position, however Coach Goldsmith eventually gave me a long pole to play with at practice. I’ve played defense from then on.”

RJ soon started playing with ADVNC Sacramento and made the ADVNC World Series of Youth Lacrosse team when he was 12, after only playing for a year.  Soon thereafter, he was chosen to play for ADVNC NDP.

“I like the relationships and friendships I’ve built with both ADVNC Sacramento and NDP,” said RJ. “We are all friends, and we get to play against each other in High School (RJ is a senior at Vista Del Lago HS in Folsom, CA.) and play together with ADVNC.”

“Our family is all about sports,” said Rex Wyrick.  Rex played football at Foothill Junior College, Kelly played horse polo at UC Davis, and RJ’s older sister, Savannah, plays golf for Bowling Green State University and was the 2021 US Women’s Amateur Long Drive National Champion.  “We’ve always supported our kids in athletics because we believe that playing sports helps them grow as an individual and learn teamwork.  ADVNC is the highest level of youth lacrosse where we live. The opportunity for RJ to play for NDP was huge. It opened doors for him to play in college.”

“NDP was extremely competitive, which I loved,” said RJ. “Competing with so many great players in practice and then against the best players in the country in tournaments was amazing.”

After several strong NDP seasons, RJ entered the college recruiting process with an open mind. “I just wanted to find a school that I liked,” he said. “The military was a big interest of mine and I’ve been thinking about serving for a long time.”

VMI showed interest in RJ early in the process.  In February of 2022, VMI invited RJ and his dad to visit the school in Lexington, Va.  They were immediately impressed by the campus, the lacrosse program, and the people they met.  Last summer, after returning from tournaments on the East Coast, VMI officially offered RJ a spot on the team and gave him the weekend to decide. During a family camping trip, RJ excitedly decided to commit to the Keydets.

“This is a great opportunity for me right now with lots more to come,” RJ said. “I really want to fly airplanes in the Air Force. That’s my goal.”

“VMI is somewhat unknown on the West Coast, but very well known on the East Coast,” said Rex. “I was impressed with the school from the beginning. It’s a huge opportunity for RJ. I think VMI will help him grow.  The school offers students a lot of support and everyone just raves about their alumni network.”

“It’s super far away, but everything about VMI is impressive.” said Kelly Wyrick. “The support they give their students and players is awesome. As a mom, knowing there is a strong school and community support system is reassuring.”

Looking back on the recruiting process, the Wyrick’s appreciate how ADVNC helped them. “Having the opportunity to play with ADVNC and be coached by their great coaches was beneficial.” said Kelly Wyrick. “The program helps fine tune their skills and improve, so that they can advance to the collegiate level of play.  ADVNC also brought us a lot of camaraderie.”

“ADVNC is drawing a lot of East Coast college coaches to look at their program here on the West Coast,” said Rex. “To get looked at by those coaches, you need to play in a major club program. ADVNC provided that. I’m super proud of RJ. It’s been a long, hard road: a lot of sacrifice, a lot of travel to and from practices and tournaments, but well worth the effort.  It takes dedication to your craft. For RJ to start lacrosse in 6th grade and end up playing DI lacrosse is awesome.”