As a three-sport standout at St. John Paul II, senior Kevin Flynn has experienced about every thrill an athlete could hope for over his four-year career.
Actually, every thrill but one. That would be clearing the fence for a home run at the team’s home field at Mass. Maritime Academy. “It’s one of my dreams,” he said of his hope for a fence-clearing blast. “I’ve done it in practice, but I’d love to put one over the fence in a game.”
The center on the Lions basketball team, a power-hitting third baseman on the diamond, and a defensive end/nose guard and right guard on the gridiron, he had already achieved every lineman’s dream during his junior year. In a game against Lowell Catholic, he scored the lone touchdown of his career on one of the team’s patented scoop-and-score plays. “It was a snap that went over the quarterback’s head, and they were on their own 10 (yard line),” he recalled. “I just picked it up and rolled in the endzone.”
Noting the play was something the team worked on in practice every day, he never expected to be in the right place at the right time for the score. “Oh my God, my teammates rushed me,” he gushed. “It was the greatest feeling.”And for a split second, he thought about punctuating the celebration with a Gronk-like end zone spike. “It did run through my mind, but I thought better of it,” he said.
Despite his rigorous athletic schedule, Flynn is an excellent student and sets scholastic priorities to accompany his success on the playing field.
“It’s helped me become organized and set up a schedule for myself throughout the day,” he said. “Whenever I have free time, I get my schoolwork done first, and the grades are first before sports.”