Hingham drops girls soccer coach
Puntiri denies allegations of bullying
Ryan Puntiri spent 13 years as the Hingham girls soccer coach and built a successful program, but he isn’t in charge of it anymore.
Puntiri was notified June 8 that his contract was not renewed for this upcoming season after four parents whose children played for Puntiri this past fall accused Puntiri of verbally bullying his players.
“I’ve been an educator for 20-plus years, I don’t mistreat student-athletes,” said Puntiri, who was also an assistant girls hockey coach at Hingham.
Hingham Athletic Director Jim Quatromoni said he couldn’t comment on the personnel matter.
Puntiri said he first learned of the allegations brought upon him at the team’s end-of-season banquet this past November, when, according to Puntiri, a parent used explicit language toward him in front of other parents and players after her daughter wasn’t selected as a captain for the 2020 season.
Puntiri added that captains are decided based on a players’ vote and that he met with Quatromoni for approval of the captains since a couple of them would be juniors.
An internal investigation followed that Puntiri said was led by Hingham’s assistant principals and did not involve Quatromoni or Hingham Principal Rick Swanson.
Puntiri added that none of his assistant coaches were interviewed as part of the investigation. The investigation yielded no findings of verbal bullying, according to Puntiri, but once the report was brought to Hingham Superintendent Paul Austin, it was deemed to fit the definition of bullying.
Puntiri, who has been a middle school physical education teacher in Braintree for the last 19 years, wasn’t immediately dismissed and he said he was finally let go from his position after an email that he claims was sent to former players, alumni and parents pleading his case and asking for support surfaced.
While Puntiri acknowledges he isn’t a perfect coach, he believes the accusations against him are false.
“I’m learning every day about how to be a better teacher, how to be a better coach,” said Puntiri, who is still the director of coaching for Hingham Youth Soccer. “I deny any of these allegations and I couldn’t deny them more.”
Puntiri transformed the Harborwomen into a perennial contender once he took over in 2007. In his career, Puntiri amassed over 150 wins and coached Hingham to three straight Div. 2 state titles from 2014-2016.
Puntiri said he isn’t afraid to point out to his players areas in which to improve or assess their effort level, which he feels is being misconstrued.
“Hingham girls soccer has become very competitive and that’s what you hope your program does, but on the flip side of that, emotions sometimes get the best of people,” Puntiri said. “I think it’s very easy to blame the coach.”
Whitman-Hanson coach David Floeck’s clubs have played Puntiri’s team twice or even three times in a season recently and Floeck held a high opinion of Puntiri’s program.
“Even though our teams are always great rivals, he and I had a great coaching respect for one another,” Floeck said. “I don’t know a lot of what went on, so I was surprised like everybody else when I read the news. I hope to see him back somewhere coaching.”
That’s Puntiri’s hope as well. He said the amount of support he has received is “overwhelming” and it drives him to share his side of the story. Puntiri was slated to have that chance Thursday in a hearing with town officials, including Austin and Swanson.
“I would love to coach again,” Puntiri said. “Me and my wife want to move to Hingham. We still want to raise our family in Hingham. I don’t like how any of this happened.”