The New Hyde Park Wildcats 2014 fall soccer season started on a blistering hot and humid day. But this did not stop any of the TOP soccer players from coming down to the Center Street Field.
Seniors 3, Coaches/Parents 2. The seniors challenged the coaches to a game after warm-ups and practice drills. It was a tight game, considering the heat. David Glass scored the first goal for the seniors with Joe Caban and Sebastian Gonzalez as his support players. Stan Yang was able to outmaneuver his son Tristian, who was playing defensive back, and scored on the seniors’ keeper to tie the score. After a much needed water break, midfielders Billy Russo, Matthew Saraiva and Tim Roth kept the ball in play for the seniors. Stefani Egre scored the second goal, putting the seniors up by one. But coach Kevin Oster dribbled past defenders Charlie Hinz and Frank LaPinta and scored to tie the game once again. The heat was finally getting to the Coaches/Parents and David Glass took advantage with seconds left in the game scoring the winning goal. This was a great start to the season for the coaches and seniors.
The intermediates and juniors welcomed new players: Austin Miao, Aboutaleb Minette, Bridget Lin and Matthew Hirsch. After warm-ups and practice drills, the intermediates and juniors played a few scrimmage games. Since everyone was so exhausted and hot, the referees and coaches did not keep score. It was nice to see all the intermediates and juniors coming back to soccer after a restful summer. With the addition of new players, it looks to be an exciting season.
Boys U7 Intramurals
BOBCATS (Coach Chris Bernic): The Bobcats started the fall season with a great effort on an extremely hot and steamy day. The first half was a defensive battle with the Jaguars and the Bobcats both taking turns defending. Caleb Yu manned the goal with authority while Om Thakur and Hamza Ghani controlled the defense. Samuel Hu contributed with great stops on defense in addition to some good runs forward. Neel Khurana played his usual brand of tough soccer, getting back in the nick of time to thwart a few Jaguar chances. When the whistle blew to end the first half, the score was knotted at 0-0. The Bobcats started to push forward a bit more in the second half. Kaleb Dyasi and Michael Farrauto created some excellent chances and kept the pressure on the Jaguar defense. Aidan Bernic demonstrated crafty foot work, creating space on a few good runs down the sideline. Austin Lee was sharp on both ends, helping to move the ball forward and also making sure to get back when defense was needed. Albert Kuo showed excellent speed on a few runs forward, one of which resulted in a pretty goal that put the Bobcats ahead by a score of 1-0. The Jaguars tried feverishly to even the score, but Jonah Beniquez wouldn’t let the ball cross the line. Jonah made save after save to preserve the Bobcat lead and ultimately helped them earn a 1-0 win. In the end, both teams gave a great effort and made all of the parents and coaches proud.
JAGUARS (Coaches Sandra Griffin and Kieran Griffin): The Jaguars began the season with much enthusiasm. The quartet of Caleb Maignon, Jason Stone, and Nick Peters, and Nicholas Christofidis played well in goal at various points. Dale Dellolacono and Eamon Griffin paced the middle of the field. Alexander Fulgieri, Harrison Acosta and Lucas Ma did a nice job defending. Zain Begawala and Luis Maignon also contributed much energy to the Jaguar attack. Well done boys.
FIGHTING TIGERS (Coaches Kurt Anschlowar and Kevin Sequeira): The Fighting Tigers started their fall season with a comeback 3-2 victory over the Panthers. Brandon Sequeira had a pair of goals and Will Handley added one. Plenty of scoring opportunities were had by Karan Arora, Lorenzo Rios, and Thomas Anschlowar. Parv Shah, Aiden Cruz and Vincent Leva played stellar on both offense and defense. Michael Tagios, Lorenzo Rios, Brandon Leong and Aiden Hom all played well, staying in position and contributing to the win. Nico Koutsoftas and Colin Jack played great in net, stopping hard shots by the Panthers. Although it was a very hot day, the Fighting Tigers fought hard and persevered through a 2-0 deficit to earn a victory.
COUGARS (Coaches Scott Liewehr and Juan Diaz): The Cougars started their season off on the right foot with a solid 3-1 win over the Lions on a scorching hot day. The boys played hard and had great energy throughout the game. Alex Stoyer and Chris Rodgers (2) scored some well-deserved goals, while Joey Teetz and Simon Thomas had multiple shots on goal as well. Ewan Zehnter and Darsh Mirchandani played aggressively at midfield, and Dantez Diaz had a few break-away runs upfield. Christian Reger and Joey Teetz each turned in some excellent goalie play, while Ethan Moy, Leo Tching, Ben Youfsan and Nico Liewehr all showed superb skills on defense. Great play by all the boys!
PANTHERS (Coach Rob Honovic): The Panthers opened the season with a hard fought loss to the Fighting Tigers by the score of 3-2. After taking a 2-0 lead into halftime, the extreme heat and humidity seamed to wear the athletes down. Nevertheless, the boys played with continued pressure and nearly tied the score on many opportunities. Jackson Bigeni led the attack, scoring both goals and displaying great all-around play. Sherwin Fernandes and Christopher Notine displayed nice ball handling skills and made fantastic runs throughout the match. Lukas Rinaldi and Thomas Honovic split the goaltending duties, making spectacular saves and keeping the Panthers in the game. Lukas and Thomas also played well defensively, preventing the Fighting Tigers from adding to their lead. Mathew Ribaric played both sides of the field, making great defensive reads as well as displaying his speed on the offensive zone. Vincent Sparacello and Arnav Kohli showed their determined play by consistently attacking the opposition. Rocco Lipari and Clayton Wong maintained the left side of the field, preventing any chances from the opposition while playing sound positional defense. The Panthers are looking forward to their next game and are determined to improve throughout the season. Go Panthers!!
LIONS (Coaches Mike Avallone and Phil Muzikant): The Lions lost a hard fought match against the Cougars in a 3-1 loss on Saturday. Gavin Dugger scored the lone goal for the Lions. Strong games were turned in by Adrian Abraham, Charles Avallone, Christopher Chen and Michael Mamo. The Lions are looking forward to their upcoming game this week against the Bobcats.
