Peyton Barton knows how important it is to be a good teammate.
And not just on the Archbishop Ryan High School soccer team, where he’s been a starter since he arrived as a freshman.
Barton is a huge part of that team, but he’s been part of a big team since the day he was born.
And it’s a team that has been growing!
Barton has eight brothers and three sisters.
“I’m in the middle, there’s a lot of us,” the Bensalem native said.
He’s not lying. His family, in age order is: James, 24, Lexie, 23, Jenna, 21, Gavin, 19, Matt, 17, Chris, 17, Peyton, 17, Chase, 15, Caidan, 9, Cole, 7, Cash, 4 and newest addition, Nova, who is 1.
Sure, it’s a lot of people, but it’s also a lot of love, and that is what makes the blended family so important to each other, according to the soccer star.
“We’re all really close, everyone gets along,” Barton said. “I’m really the only one who plays sports, seriously. They all play, but not for teams. They just mostly mess around. But they always support me with it.
“My dad comes to every game, but I have people at every game. It’s whoever is around, they’ll come out. We’re a really close family for how big it is.”
Whenever he needs support, Barton knows he can rely on his family, just as they can rely on him. He’s the same way with his teammates on the Raiders.
Barton grew into the position after getting thrown right into the mix. He was a good player as a freshman, but he needed seasoning that he got by playing important Catholic League games.
By his sophomore year, he had a huge hand in the Raiders winning the Catholic League championship by beating Father Judge in one of the most memorable soccer games in Northeast Philly history.
While he was gaining experience, he was watching some great leaders run the team.
This year, it’s his turn after coach Ryan Haney named him as one of the team’s captains. It’s an honor Barton isn’t only excited about, it’s one he takes very seriously.
“The biggest difference this year is I’m a captain, so I have a lot more responsibility,” Barton said. “I’m really happy about it, it’s a huge honor. Coach picked them and told us after my junior year. It means a lot to me.
“I learned a lot of how to be a good leader last year from our captains,” Barton said of last year’s key guys Frankie Monaco, Owen Stock and Mike McCurry. “I learned a lot from them, but I’m trying to be a good leader. I lead more by example, so I’m trying to do that. It’s going pretty well because we have a really good team.”
The Raiders should be a very good team in a balanced Catholic League this year, which is nothing new.
Last year Ryan fell a game shy of making the championship to defend its PCL crown, but Barton would love to make it two in three years.
And he thinks it’s possible.
The Raiders not only have the talent, they gained valuable experience this summer when they competed in a men’s summer league.
There, they ran into some familiar faces.
“We had a good summer, we played in a men’s league,” Barton said. “We did good. We didn’t win, but we lost against our alumni team in the playoffs. It was Owen Stock, Frankie, Mike and seniors from two years ago when we won the championship. It was tough playing against them, but it was fun. And we got better. I think it’ll help us a lot, 100 percent. They were a very good team.”
That raises the stakes for this year.
La Salle has a great team, Father Judge is always tough, and teams like Wood, Roman, St. Joe’s Prep and Lansdale Catholic can always cause concern.
But why not Ryan?
“This year, we’re young but working on it. I think we’ll be good,” said Barton, who played freshmen basketball before focusing on soccer. “I want to win for coach. He kind of is close with my dad, so he talks to him a lot. We have our little chats. I know how much he wants us to win. He relied on me since freshman year and that meant a lot. I’d love to get him another championship.”
He’s also starting to look to the future. Short term, he wants the championship and an All-Catholic nomination. Down the line, he wants to play college soccer and major in business.
He knows he can rely on his Ryan teammates, and of course his other team.
“I love having a big family,” Barton said. “We are always there for each other. That’s the best thing. I can’t think of a bad thing. It’s great to have them, I know they’re there for me.”
