The Boys Varsity soccer team had a very successful season, but fell short in the last game.
Boys soccer, lead by coaches John Chiavaroli and Andrew Syfu, had a tough schedule of games in the 2024 season, but ended up doing well and making a huge playoff run. They lost 8-1 in the final game, against Suffield Academy, on November 17, 2024.
The first three games of the season were the team’s first time playing together as a group, and the team was learning how to play with each other. Most of the players are new to the team or young sophomores and freshman. The first league game of the season, on the 11th of September, was against Berkshire, a very good class A team.
The soccer team ended with 7-5-1 record including Class A and B teams.
D’ari Coddington, a sophomore from Bermuda who plays center back, thought his team could have connected better in the beginning of the season.
“In the beginning of the season I think the team our team did not do so well communicating to each other which eventually got better throughout the season, which helped us get so far, ” he said.
Luis Gene Creel, a freshman from Mexico who plays striker, felt that the soccer team’s communication and camaraderie improved as the season went on.
“I think that everyone was not connected and did not know the capabilities of each player in the beginning, and at the end of the season it felt like we were communicating a lot and it became almost like a second family,” he said.
Enzo Benetti, a sophomore from Brazil who plays center defensive midfield, felt that since the most valuable players on the team were hurt, team lost some confidence.
“First of all we had our best players injured and realizing that right before the game drained the team’s energy, making us play not the greatest,” he said.
There were many injuries that affected the team during the season. One player, Nico Garcia, a junior from Madrid, Spain, is known as one of the best players on the team, but he tore his ACL in the first round of playoffs last season and was not able to play this year.
Another player, Ayden Kokoszka, sprained his MCL in the semifinal game against Mt. St. Charles on November 16. Ayden was arguably the team’s best player with 25 goals and 13 assists, and he was awarded with all NEPSACS for his performance throughout the season.
Another player who contributed a lot to the team, Danny Argueta, a senior from Guatemala, had a recurring knee injury throughout the season and was not able to play the last game.
Andrew Syfu, Assistant Coach and Goalkeeper Coach for the team, is proud of his players, and has some ideas how the team can improve for next year.
“I felt our season was incredibly successful. A lot of our success came from players making big plays in important moments – from the difficult task of scoring goals to our playing stingy and physical defense,” Syfu said.
“There is also a lot that happens that doesn’t get into the score sheets that should get credit – and not just from our most experienced players, but also from players coming off the bench,” he added. “I believe that teams and players ‘create their own luck’ by practicing with intensity and thinking at game speed. Many of our players were new to the program and new to prep soccer.
Along with off-season training, Syfu said players ‘should also be students of the game and study different scenarios so that in games, actions will be habit.”
