Vermont rookie Ryan Zellefrow returning to College Cup, this time as a player

Seven years ago this week Ryan Zellefrow was walking out onto the pitch at Subaru Park in Chester at the College Cup final between Stanford and Indiana.

An 11-year-old FC Europa player at the time, Zellefrow was escorting Indiana’s star center back Grant Lillard onto the field ahead of the final Stanford ended up winning in overtime.

Ryan Zellefrow at the 2017 College Cup final at Subaru Park (Then known as Talen Energy Stadium) | Photos by Matthew Ralph

This Friday, the Berwyn native will be back at the College Cup, this time taking the field at WakeMed Soccer Park as one of the players.

The Vermont rookie has made an impact as a rookie with the Catamounts, providing versatility with his ability to play multiple positions and doing what he’s done in the different playing experiences he had before college – from local club FC Europa to the Portland Timbers Academy to Conestoga High School and Philadelphia Union’s reserve team and development squad.

“It’s been a blast,” Zellefrow said of his rookie season, which has been an historic one for the Catamounts making the College Cup for the first time. “We were at Jay Peak, a mountain resort up here for preseason, and you could just see the talent, the will to win and how much we all cared about it. We actually talked about winning a national championship and I think I started to realize even then we could actually do this.”

Catamounts are Rolling!

Ryan Zellefrow makes it 4-0 @UVMMsoccer off Sydney Wathuta’s 13th assist of the season! pic.twitter.com/8LPeq2OcZb

— America East (@AmericaEast) November 22, 2024

Playing on a squad with so much depth and experience didn’t exactly guarantee playing time for Zellefrow but he’s managed to make the most of his chances, logging more than 1,400 minutes and contributing a pair of goals and a pair of assists. Phoenixville native Zach Barrett and Wyncote native Lou Liedtka are among 8 grad students on a roster that also boasts four seniors.

“I came in as nine the first couple games, and then went to winger and then went to six,” Zellefrow said. “So I think I’m lucky to be able to do that and to have the opportunities to do that for the team.”

Vermont will be taking on Denver in the first of two semifinals on Friday at 5 p.m. Ohio State will play Marshall in the second semifinal. Out of the four teams only Marshall has won it before (2020) and Ohio State is the only other team that’s played in the final, something they did just once in 2007. Denver made the College Cup for the first and only time in 2016, losing to Wake Forest on an overtime winner from Ian Harkes.

“We’re super grateful to still be playing with such a great group of guys,” Zellefrow said. “And hopefully we get to play two more games together.”