Briarcliff, Somers Seek to Repeat on Section 1 Pitch

Defending Champ Somers Drops Down to Reign on Class A

By Tony Pinciaro

Sage Wiley and her BRIARCLIFF soccer teammates did not allow a 2023 Section 1 Class B championship to alter their approach to the offseason. The Bears worked even harder during the offseason after six pivotal players graduated from the ‘23 team. Briarcliff is also aware it will now be a highlighted game on its opponent’s schedule being a defending sectional champion.

“We did a lot of cross fit and strength and conditioning programs,” said Wiley, a three-year varsity starter. “We did a lot of training indoors and outdoors. We’re emphasizing this is a team and yes, Briarcliff has a great legacy, but we are also a new team after we graduated six seniors. Everyone who is returning has that value of working and training hard.

“We won the sectional title so we know everyone is coming for us and no matter how good we think we are, it’s who is the fitter team and who works harder.”

Briarcliff was forced to work hard and additional time by CROTON-HARMON in the Section 1 Class B championship game. The Tigers forced overtime with a late rally before Jillian Mauro struck quickly in the extra stanza with the championship goal.

Briarcliff carried that momentum into its regional semifinal with James I. O’Neill, but the Section 9 champions shocked the Bears in double overtime, 3-2. Despite the regional result, Wiley and her teammates sent the seniors out with a memorable season.

“It meant a lot to our six seniors and doing it for them was a big deal,” said Wiley, an impact player and leader of the defense.

Wiley, along with classmate Ava Makaron and juniors, Mar Rivera-Font and Gemma Fante, are the captains. Rivera-Font (midfield) and Fante (midfield/forward), along with sophomore Lily Rowe (midfield/forward) are the returning leading scorers.

Sophomore Lilah Prosperino rejoins Wiley on defense and fellow sophomore Gabriella Auguste returns at either forward  or midfield.

A promising underclassmen group features sophomore  Mia Gurreri (goalie) and the freshmen trio of Maia Rivera Font (midfield/forward), Estela Soffer (defense/midfield) and Juliann Labick (defense/midfield) D/M.

Even with a later start to preseason than usual, Wiley likes what she has seen from the newcomers.

“Everyone was motivated to get on the field and work hard,” Wiley said. “We lost six seniors so we have a lot of younger players coming in. They’re really motivated and they have a good work ethic.”

Briarcliff opens the season Wednesday, hosting Valhalla in a Mount Pleasant Cup first-round game. The other first-round game is Westlake-Pleasantville. Prior to playing Valhalla, Briarcliff scrimmaged Mamaroneck.

Scrimmaging Mamaroneck is an example of Briarcliff coach David Villalobos stacking the Bears’ schedule with high-caliber teams. It’s a challenge Wiley and her teammates welcome.

“Coach David does this because he believes in us and knows that we can step up to the challenge,” Wiley said. “We did that last year and this year we can do the same.”

Villalobos is just as excited as his players to get the season going.

“I say this every year that it’s always exciting to come back to a new season,” said Villalobos, in his fourth year. “As players graduate, you look forward to seeing who is returning, who will step up and which newcomers will provide an impact. We want to return to the section final and advance even further in regionals and then move on to states, but we know it’s going to be a very difficult ride to get there.

“As defending champs, teams are going to come after us. That’s the beauty of this sport. We want that and we are prepared for it. There are many great teams in our section and we are very much looking forward to competing with them again.”

Noteworthy: Briarcliff 2024 graduate Sora Marable is playing soccer at Drexel University. … Villalobos pointed out the following games as circle-the-date: Bronxville (9/28); Pleasantville, 10/4, at Pace University for Break The Hold Campaign (2nd Annual Rivalry Match); Ursuline (10/8); Irvington (10/10). … Assistant coach Lauren Pesce was a starter at midfield on Mahopac’s 2001 New York State Class A champion field hockey team.

SOMERS drops down to Class A this year after reaching the NYSPHSAA Class AA semifinals in 2023, and the Tuskers are every bit as loaded as usual. With the potential to score a ton of goals, the Tuskers will be hard to deny.

SOMERS TUSKERS

Coach: Kelci Hegg (fifth year)

2023 record: 22-1

2023 Sectional and state results: Won Section AA title, 3-1 over Horace Greeley. Lost in a state semifinal to Spencerport, 3-1.

2024 League favorite and sectional favorite, Class A: League – Somers. Section – Rye and Somers.

Graduated seniors, including starters from 2023 team: Eight, including four starters.

Top returnees: Tiana Righetti, Sr., M (2023: 15 goals, 10 assists, All-Section, All-NYS); Julia Arbelaez, Sr., M (2023: 31 goals, 14 assists, All-Section, All-NYS), Julia Schmidberger, Sr., G (2023: 11 SO, 12 GA, .60 GAA, 21 wins as starting keeper, All-Section), Lindsay Ulaj, Jr., F (2023: 3 goals, 13 assists, All-Section), Marley Hawkins, Jr., D (All-Section).

Strengths: Midfield with two DI players, strong goalkeepers and returning both center backs, who only conceded nine goals in the 2023 regular season.

Coach’s season outlook: Our team is looking to continue our path of going one step further than the previous year. We look forward to returning to Class A with strong competition. The team is hungry to pick up where we left off and we have several newcomers and returners who can fill the roles of those who graduated.

Noteworthy: Arbelaez has 72 goals in her career. … Somers’ schedule includes games with Rye, Pearl River, Arlington and Scarsdale. … 2024 graduates Annie Maguire (Fordham), Natalia Sanchez (Manhattanville) and Bridget Kossow (Buffalo State) are playing soccer.

CROTON TIGERS

Coach: Winston McKoy (third year)

2023 record: 10-6

2023 Sectional results: Lost, in overtime, to Briarcliff, in the Class B championship game.

Graduated seniors, including starters from 2023 team: Seven.

Top returnees: Gwen McManus, Sr., D (2023: All-Section, All-League); Ava Andrews, F (2023: All-League); Ariel Gagne, D (All-League); Sadie Levitt, D (All-League).

Key newcomers: Kate Weber, Fr.; Avery Gosnell, 8th-grader.

Strengths: Speed, endurance, quality play, poise, balance,    Coach’s season outlook: We want to continue from where we left off last season.

Noteworthy: Sophia Kim is attending SUNY-Delhi and also playing soccer.

HENDRICK HUDSON SAILORS

Coach: Bill Pagel (ninth year)

2023 record: 7-10

2023 Sectional result: Lost in Class A first-round to semi-finalist John Jay-Cross River.

Graduated seniors, including starters from 2023 team: Two starters.

Top returnees: Liv Johnsen, Sr., F (2023: All-Section, 39 career goals, 29 career assists); Kiely Morley, Sr., F (2023: All-League, 14 career goals, nine career assists; Oakley Gougelmann, Sr., M (2023: All-League); Eleni Schattman, Sr., M (2023: All-League); Samantha Gatto, Sr., D. Skyler Selkin, Fr., M.

Key newcomers: Bridget Couch, Fr., M; Shayla Cachay, So., D/M.

Coach’s season outlook: We should have a strong season with a good group of very experienced players returning from last season. Our seniors will provide great leadership and our younger players are skilled, so we have a great mix of experience and talent which is a good formula for success.

Liv Johnsen has a chance to surpass her sister, Lena Johnsen, as Hen Hud’s all-time leading scorer and Kiely Morley has a chance to become a top-five scorer in school history.

Noteworthy: Lena Johnsen is playing soccer at Fordham. … Hen Hud is in a new league this year.

HORACE GREELEY QUAKERS

Coach: Angela Russo (third year)

2023 record: 14-4-2

2023 Sectional results: Lost to Somers in the Class A championship game.

2024 Sectional favorite, Class AA: Yorktown, Mahopac, Albertus Magnus, Greeley. League: Greeley, Ossining, White Plains.
Graduated seniors, including starters from 2023 team: Seven.

Top returnees: Esme Weiss, M (2023: nine goals, eight assists, All-Section, All-League); Rachel Glick, F (2023: 11 goals, five assists, All-Section, All-League); Emily Hametz, D (2023: All-League, All-Section Honorable Mention); Lauren Singer, GK (2023: All-League, All-Section, and League Player of the Year).

Coach’s season outlook: I am incredibly excited for the new season and have high hopes for our very talented group of players. We have a large number of veteran upperclassmen who will lead the team with composure and a strong determination to go even farther than we did last season. The team chemistry, and their motivation to work hard every day, makes my job so enjoyable. I look forward to watching them grow throughout the season, and have tremendous belief in this team.

Noteworthy: 2024 graduate Meredith Feiner is attending Wesleyan and also playing soccer. … Prior to becoming head coach, Russo was the varsity assistant beginning in 2008.

LAKELAND HORNETS

Coach: Greg Doell (first year)

2023 Sectional results: Lost to Albertus Magnus in a quarterfinal.

2024 League and sectional favorite, Class AA: Somers in both.

Top returnees: Kayleigh Mula, Sr., M (2023: All-Section); Caroline Leonard, Jr., M (2023: All-League); Caroline Daly, Jr., F (2023: All-League); Samantha DelPonte, Jr., D (2023:  All-League); Gianna Pace, So., F (2023: All-League); Lilly Whippo, Sr.; Victoria Marricco, Sr.

Coach’s season outlook: We are excited to get started, work hard and see how things turn out in the end.

Noteworthy: Doell was the assistant coach for the previous four years to Shawn Sullivan.

PANAS PANTHERS

Coach: Kyle Pierce (seventh year)

2023 record: 5-12

2023 Sectional results: Lost Class A first-round game.

2024 League favorite and sectional favorite, Class A: Somers.

Graduated seniors, including starters from 2023 team: Six.

Top returnees: Giuliana Rodriguez, Sr., M (2023: 10 goals, 9 assists, All-League, All-Section Honorable Mention); Emily Jankowski, Sr., M; Emily Barraza, Sr., D; Hannah Marques, Sr. M; Jeimmy Rosa, Sr. M; Bessy Quijano, Sr., M.

Key newcomers: Isabella Mula, Fr., M; Olivia Mark, Fr., F; Sofia Rivera, Fr., M; Emily Riggio, So., D.

Coach’s season outlook: Although we have a tough schedule and are in a tough league, Panas is going to play hard every day in hopes of competing for a league title. With the exception of our eight seniors, the rest of the team is fairly young. Many of the girls on our team are playing together for the first time. We have a great group of young women with excellent attitudes that have been working hard during camp.

MAHOPAC WOLFPAC

Coach: James Carroll (first year)

2023 record: 9-4-3

2023 Sectional result: Lost in Quarterfinals

Graduating seniors, including starters, from the 2023 team: Nine, including seven starters.

Top returnees: Fiona, Kelleher Jr., M/F (2023 All-League);

Niamh Kelleher, Jr., D; Melania Hracs, Sr., M/F.

Key newcomers: Maria Garofalo, Jr., D; Kayleigh Dolan, So., F; Samantha Mazzella, Fr., M; Brianna Savino, Fr., G.

Coach’s season outlook: We lost nine seniors from last year, including seven starters so our team will have a much different look entering this season. We will be a younger team, but I have seen a lot of positives from both the returning players as well as our new additions. Hoping to see some similar success to what we had last year. One area of improvement I would like to see would be when attacking in the final third. We had a lot of difficulties in 2023 finishing our opportunities and I am optimistic that between our returning attackers and incoming additions we can improve in this area. Losing three starters in our defensive unit will be difficult to replace, but I see a lot of potential in the options we have to replace our starting seniors from last year.

Noteworthy: Carroll was the varsity assistant the previous five years alongside Casey Carroll.

PEEKSKILL RED DEVILS

Coach: Anthony DiCuio (third year)

2023 record: 7-9

2023 Sectional results: Lost in Class A out-bracket game to Horace Greeley.

2024 League favorite: Sleepy Hollow.

Graduated seniors, including starters from 2023 team: Two starters.

Top returnees: Janeyra Maldonado, Sr., M/F (2023: six goals, three assists); Valeria Otavalo, So., M;  (2023; six goals, three assists); Brianna Zhunio, Sr., M/D; Natalie Foster, D (2023: five goals, six assists); Victoria Jovel, So., G.
Key newcomers: Jozelyn Zhinin, Fr., F; Dayana Sari, Fr., D/M; Kimberly Alfaro, Fr., F.

Strengths: Veteran defense, goalie work ethic.

Question marks, if any: Younger players acclimating to the varsity level.

Coach’s season outlook: This will be an interesting year as we have almost an equal number of freshmen as seniors. The challenge will be melding our veteran players with our incoming group. Luckily, our captains, Brianna Zhunio, Janeyra Maldonado, and Natalie Foster, are excellent leaders and we are confident they will help bridge this gap. We will be a tough group to play against and we will have the ability to surprise people as we move through the season. When other teams play us they will always match up against a hard-working, energetic, and respectful team that is constantly working to get better each day.

Noteworthy: Peekskill will host the Latin X Showcase, Sept. 21.

PLEASANTVILLE PANTHERS

Coach: Anthony Portera (second year)

2023 record: 11-5-2

2023 Sectional and state results: Lost in Section 1 Class B semifinals.

Graduated seniors, including starters from 2023 team: Nine, including three starters.

Strengths: Team culture; unity.

Coach’s season outlook: We return an exceptional group, as a whole, from last season and anticipate adding newcomers who can contribute from the start. We have worked hard over the summer to prepare for what lies ahead. In our program’s culture, the TEAM is our top priority and all of our returnees and newcomers are committed to that concept. The entire coaching staff is excited for the start of the season and what we can accomplish as a group. The goal is to take things one day at a time and to work hard to improve on and off the field.

Noteworthy: The Second Annual Break-the-Hold Rivalry Game vs. Briarcliff will be played, October 4, 7 p.m., at Pace University.

VALHALLA VIKINGS

Coach: Chris Doerr (fourth year)

2023 record: 4-12

2023 Sectional results: Lost to Pleasantville – Class B second round.

Graduated seniors, including starters from 2023 team: One starter.

Top returnees: Violet Mattoni, Sr., M; Isabella Mattoni, Sr., M; Sienna Reddy, D; Giulia Rutigliano, G.

Strength: Team chemistry.

Coach’s season outlook: Excited to start another season at Valhalla. Working alongside a great coaching staff and players that are committed to improving the program. I am excited to see how this season plays out. We aim for a strong play-off run in addition to a strong season.

Noteworthy: Violet and Bella Mattoni will attend Oneonta next year and also play soccer. … Valhalla will open its season against Briarcliff in a Mount Pleasant Cup first-round game.