The Huntington varsity boys’ soccer team is coming off a 13-3-1 season that saw the Blue Devils win their third league title in five years. Can the magic repeat itself next fall?
Huntington is losing many of its top players to graduation, including leading scorer Jasson Garay who tallied 15 goals and six assists. But the Blue Devils are returning a nice nucleus of varsity players, some of whom saw significant time on the field in 2019.
Yovani Rubio is set for the throw-in. (Darin Reed photo)
The leading returnee looks to be junior defender Jah-Meer Sallet, who was tapped as All-League. Juniors Wilber Cuadra, Yovani Rubio, Owen Husselbeck and Arnold Alfaro and sophomore Jose Flores are also expected to play leading roles on the team.
Losing Garay and his goal scoring capabilities will hurt, but he thinks Alfaro and Flores are ready to step into his shoes. “I believe with their goal scoring mentality, they can take the team far,” Garay said. Husselbeck can do it all on the field and can play just about every position.
The returning unit also includes sophomore Roberto Contreras and juniors Benton Cueto, Trevor Cueto, Alex Martinez, Osiris Shepherd and Jairo Ulloa.
Head coach John Pagano and assistant coach Jason Suarez have a lot of work to do with the team, including finding a replacement for goalie Cole Pillion, who will be graduating in June. But there are many talented younger players winding their way to the varsity level.
Powerhouse JV last fall
Last fall’s junior varsity boys’ soccer team was exceptional and came awfully close to a perfect season, compiling a 12-1 record.
Coached by Blue Devil alum Jose Alfaro, the Huntington JV was talented throughout its roster, with experienced and skilled players at every position. The squad was led by forwards Jeison Portillo (25 goals, 10 assists) and Julio Martinez (15 goals, 5 assists), midfielders Matt Lange, Ian Husselback and Kieran Husselback and defenders Liam Lennon and Dylan Schnitzer.
Portillo was an offensive powerhouse. “Jeison had one goal this season and it was to break the JV scoring record held by Carlos Rivera,” Alfaro said. “He came very close, but missed by four.” (Portillo had 25 goals in 13 games while Rivera scored 29 times in 16 games.)
Martinez also shined as a scorer. “Julio is a bigtime player, smooth and natural with the ball,” Alfaro said. “Big things are ahead for him and Jeison.)
The Blue Devils were captained by Liam Lennon, Matt Lange and Joe Rodriquez. “The team had a high soccer IQ,” Alfaro said. “They weren’t satisfied with just winning. They wanted to win by playing beautifully.”
The team’s roster included freshmen Jeison Blanco Portillo, Roman Borovica, Vincent Grassi, Ian Husselbeck, Kieran Husselbeck, Christian Panameno-Delcid, Justin Perez Castillo, Enzo Pupillo, Nikolai Seferian and Christopher Sorto-Garcia; sophomores Elmer Aguilera Avila, Cecilio Alvarez, Ronaldo Arias-Alfaro, Cristian Avelar-Romero, Denilson Diaz Mejia, Matthew Lange, Liam Lennon, Julio Martinez, Enri Reyes-Flores, Joseph Rodriquez-Valdez, Dylan Schnitzer and Henry Vohs; and juniors Brenden Abedin, Deyby Diaz, Ethan Franciscovich, Joseph O’Connell, Mike-el Ollivierre and Andreas Seferian.
Finley players in soccer pipeline
J. Taylor Finley Middle School fielded two very strong boys’ soccer teams last fall and players from those squads are in the pipeline and will make an impact on the high school level soon.
Eighth grader Bryan Lizama scored 21 goals to pace the Finley team coached by Travis Smith to a 9-0-1 mark.
While Lizama was clearly a star, he wasn’t a one man show by any means. “This was a complete team effort,” Smith said. “Everyone contributed to the team’s success.”
The top seventh grade players included forwards Colin Lennon (10 goals) and Antonio Leotta; midfielders Justin Villatoro, Jhordan Hernandez, Connor Fox, Brian Lynch, Anthony Addeo, Gustavo Flores, Luke Wesnofske and James Vohs; defenders Jerson Contreras and Andrew Case and goalie Nicholas Plachta.
The top eighth grade players included forwards Bryan Lizama and Jose Flores (seven goals); midfielders Teddy Leavy (six goals), Peter Leavy (five goals), Leuris Tavarez and Justin Alvarez; defenders Raymond Cumella, Eddie Canales, Jose Cabrera, Emil Licona and Chase Williams and goalie Dylan Hayden.
“We had a very hardworking, skillful and competitive team,” Smith said. “Our defense and goaltending was strong. Our offense was explosive with multiple playmaker and goal scorers. Goals were scored by 14 different players. Our goalies and defenders combined for five shutouts.”
The Finley team coached by Alex Nelson also turned in a splendid season, compiling a 7-2-1 record. The squad included 30 players and outscored its opponents by a 42-24 margin.
Eighth grade striker Emerson Garay led Finley with eight goals. “He has an absolute canon for a right foot,” Nelson. “It might be the hardest shot in Huntington.”
Seventh grade striker Carlos Marroquin and eighth grade right wing Cruz Flores had six goals each. “Carlos is left-footed and his technical skills with the ball are as good as his shot,” Nelson said. “Cruz is one of the smartest players on the field. He’s also in the correct spot.”
Eighth grader Nicholas Rosan was superb at center midfield, scoring a pair of goals, playmaking and playing great defense. “Nick is a master craftsman with the ball at his feet,” Nelson said.
Eighth grade Dante Salgado was another of Finley’s top players, excelling at center back and even scoring a goal. “An immoveable object, not a single player in the league matches Dante’s athleticism,” Nelson said.
Eighth grader Andrew Castillo shined at center midfield and he, too, scored a goal. “Andrew is a well-rounded player with the size and speed to control the middle of the field,” Nelson said.
Seventh grader Parker Wands sparkled at center back and eighth grader Daniel VanArsdale enjoyed a great year at goalie. “Parker was the most balanced player on the team and is capable of playing any position,” Nelson said. “Daniel was a wall in the net. His skill with the ball matches his keeper skills.”
Finley’s roster also included seventh graders Michael Brandine, Jasiah Castillo Cortes, Bradley Contreras, Gavin Deegan, Justin D’Eloia, Chase Gadaire, Josue Gomez, Dylan Proctor, Ryan Scanlon, Jayden Schneider, Zachary Schnitzer and Jonathan Vigil-Camps and eighth graders Harris Alba, Melvin Avelar-Romero, Josh Bhardhwaj, Josiah Freeman, Tyler Godin, Anthony Jimenez Avila, Nikolai Lulewich, Yexson Molina Arevalo, Jorge Reyes and Gustavo Reyes Ochoa.
There’s a large degree of soccer interest at the elementary school level, too. Huntington players at every level can’t wait to get back on the field this fall.