Wendy (Evans) Ryan

Class of 1975 – Mrs. Ryan is used to many firsts in her sports career, however one of the most significant was being the first female (and perhaps only) to compete on the boy’s swimming team, since a girls team did not exist at Hamburg at that time. Not only did she compete, she excelled, and was named team captain. In May of 1973, Mrs. Ryan set the Erie County Girl’s Athletic Association 50-yard freestyle record of 27.4 seconds, during the high school championship meet. After graduating from Hamburg in 1975, and swimming at Syracuse on a scholarship, Mrs. Ryan was the first Syracuse University woman athlete to qualify for a national championship since the inter-collegiate program began in 1971. She went on to qualify for national competition for four consecutive years. ln 1979, as team captain, Mrs. Ryan was awarded the college’s prestigious Verhulst Award for swimming, making her sportswomen of the year. In 1987, Mrs. Ryan was inducted into the Syracuse Orange Plus Hall of Fame. Mrs. Ryan was a teacher for the City of Buffalo -Deaf and Hearing Handicapped for 29 years.