Where are they now?: Ryan McDonald plays semi-pro in Louisville

Despite graduating from the University of Louisville in 2008, men’s professional indoor soccer player Ryan McDonald still calls Louisville his home.
McDonald’s senior season at U of L was his best to date. He started in all of U of L’s 20 regular-season games, scored a collegiate career high of 6 goals and 2 assists, and amassed 14 points on the season.  In his final game as a Cardinal, McDonald scored the go-ahead goal against the University of Jacksonville in the NCAA Tournament, but the Cardinals would go on to lose 4-3 in overtime, ending their 2008 season.
His time spent as a U of L athlete, playing for men’s soccer head coach Ken Lolla, was one of the most rewarding and difficult times in his life.
“My first spring was probably the hardest four or five months of my life, physically,” said McDonald, a former U of L defender.  “But you could tell everything was coming together. We knew what he expected of us, and it was awesome.”
It was the help of Lolla and assistant coach Brian Maisonneuve that propelled McDonald to the next level of soccer.
“You can tell [Maisonneuve] knows what he’s doing,” said McDonald. “He comes from another level. He brings that part where he’s played pro, he’s played for our national team and he knows what it takes to become a better player for the next level.”
Only eight months out of college, McDonald decided to try out for Louisville’s new Professional Arena Soccer League, the Louisville Lightning.
“I was looking to play pretty much anywhere,” said McDonald. “I actually heard about the league from a friend. And they said to try out; so I did.”
After this important tryout, the Lightning coaches selected McDonald to play as a defender. Since that day, he has continually impressed the coaches.
“Ryan is one of our most gifted athletes, with the potential to play in the [United Soccer Leagues] this spring,” said David Horne, Lightning assistant coach and general manager. “His size and ability in the air, and consistency on the ball, are his greatest strengths. To go along with it, Mac has a great attitude. He gives his best effort at every training session, and he has fun doing it.”
Most college athletes who choose to play at the professional level go through a transitional period. The fundamentals of their game are there, but the physicality and strength increases significantly in this time.
“He definitely has progressed as an indoor player,” said Lightning head coach Scott Budnick. “He has definite upside potential, and I think he will develop more.”
McDonald’s semi-pro career is only two games old, but he is enjoying playing under the roof at Mocking Bird Valley Soccer Club — home of the Lightning — just as much as he enjoyed playing under the lights in Cardinal Park Stadium.
“I am having fun here,” said McDonald. “It’s awesome.”


This is the first of an occasional series of former University of Louisville athletes.

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