Seaford makes promising strides

On the heels of an improved 2016 season, Seaford boys’ soccer is looking for continued progression this fall.

Seaford rebounded from a two-win 2015 campaign to finish 5-6-1 last year and is striking for a winning record in 2017. The Vikings entered the week at 1-1-1 on the young season with early promise of achieving a playoff spot in Conference ABC-III.

“If we can compete the way we have the first three games we will be right there,” Seaford head coach Ralph Pascarella said. “The playoffs are a realistic goal.”

Senior central midfielder Luke Kasulke is looking to close his high school career on a high note after back-to-back All-County seasons. Kasulke, who is getting heavily recruited by Division I college soccer programs, tallied a goal in Seaford’s 2-0 season opening win at Locust Valley on Sept. 5. The co-captain is an offensive threat every match despite generating plenty of attention from opposing defenses.

“He is an attacking type forward,” Pascarella said of Kasulke. “He is able to beat players one on one.”

Kasulke leads the Vikings with fellow senior co-captain Ryan Pearse, who anchors the defense. The athletic Pearse can also generate scoring chances from the backline and like Kasulke is drawing recruiting interest from colleges.

“He really leads the guys well,” Pascarella said of Pearse. “He is doing a good job early on keeping the team together.”

Kasulke and Pearse drive a senior-laden team that also includes Tommy Diprizito, Nicky Diana, Andrew Schutzman, Mike Donegan, Nick Minerva and Mike Fucarino. Pascarella is impressed with Minerva’s tenacity rebounding from a broken fibula suffered in the spring to return to the pitch this fall.

“He has worked his face off to get back,” Pascarella said of Minerva. “I’m happy for him.”

Seaford’s large senior group is balanced by talented underclassmen including sophomores Matt Karounos, Robert Beroncini and goalie Mark Armano. After shining on junior varsity, Armano is stepping up as the Vikings’ starting net-minder early on in the 2017 campaign.

“He is doing very well,” said Pascarella of his keeper, who recorded eight saves in a shutout victory against Locust Valley and six stops in a 1-1 tie at Island Trees on Sept. 7.

Seaford faces Oyster Bay this Saturday under the lights for a 6:30 p.m. kickoff and then travels to Clarke two days later. The Vikings also have back-to-back home contests on tap versus Wheatley on Sept. 27 at 4:30 p.m. and Malverne on Oct. 2 at 7 p.m. 

Pascarella said he hopes to see improvement throughout the season to position Seaford for a chance to shine on the postseason stage. He stressed the most important factor that’ll determine how the season goes is playing as a team with each player knowing their roles on the field.

“We definitely don’t need to be super out there, but we have to play smart,” he said. “It’s a long season and we’ll see what happens.”