By:Brian McLaughlin
When the season began, South Side was a team with no titles in its history even at the county level and very little post-season experience. No one expected the team to go as far as it has this year. No one, that is, except for the Cyclones themselves.
We didn-t want to jinx ourselves, but we simply knew that we had a very strong team, said senior co-captain Kevin Riley as he reflected on the opening days of the season. With a substantial number of experienced seniors returning and a talented crop of underclassmen, the Cyclones could hear the whisper of the state title as early as their first game, a dominant 7-3 victory over Cold Spring Harbor. Their subsequent wins over Long Beach and Bellmore had many South Side fans joining in the players- optimism.
But that optimism was soon dealt a crushing blow when South Side lost its fourth game of the season to the less-than-formidable MacArthur. A loss so early in the year soured the moods of players and fans alike, but some Cyclones saw a silver lining in the loss. It woke us up and showed us that if we wanted to win, it was going to be serious work, not a party, said senior goalie John Kennedy. For me, it was the most memorable game of the season, because it was a turning point for the team.
Following the MacArthur game, South Side competed in an invitational match in Florida. Aside from a rousing 15-5 victory on the trip, Riley said the experience was also important in terms of team unity. We really bonded on that trip, he said. It was there that we promised ourselves we would make it to the county finals. Riley said that each member of the team tied pieces of red yarn into a single strand to symbolize their commitment to one another.
The team returned from Florida reborn. It went on a streak of victories against rivals both great and small, the Cyclones- determination to make it through the playoffs rendering them simply unbeatable. Senior Keith Marrano attributed the unyielding success to South Side-s range as a team. We had solid goalies, strong defense, speed and great shooters, said Marrano, No matter who we were playing and what their strength was, we had a strength that could beat it.
One strategy South Side head coach Joe Baccarella used throughout the season was alternating his goalies, switching between the large lefty, Kennedy, in the first halves and agile righty sophomore Danny Orlando in the second. Mixing it up like that really kept the other teams on their toes, said Kennedy. Supported by the starting defensive line of seniors Chris Gammello, Ryan Caso and Mike Cove, neither Kennedy nor Orlando saw many shots go past them this season.
On the other side of the field, South Side had a remarkably wide array of strong shooters to rely on. Fifteen different South Side players had goals this year. The offensive assault was led by seniors Kent Lucas and Kevin Hill, who had 55 and 51 goals, respectively. Senior Chris White also made a name for himself as a playmaker, leading the team in assists.
South Side also had help off the field. The playersâ parents and fans became an important part of each game. Their simple cheer Be the best! became the Cyclone-s battle cry. During the playoff series, White-s mother, Ellen, even took scoops of soil from beneath the practice nets found in most of the players- backyards and had them sprinkled behind the benches of the opposing teams to give her son and the rest of the Cyclones some additional good luck. Cove-s mother, Theresa, said that she was proud of the team-s cooperative attitude. It was clear that each victory was a joint effort, she said. They each needed one another in order to win.
These sentiments were echoed by Coach Baccarella following the Cyclones- 12-9 final win over the Corning East Trojans last weekend, when he said that the successful season was only possible because of the massive contributions made by all members of the South Side Cyclones family, both on and off the field.
Whether it was teamwork, luck, talent, just plain hard work or, most likely, a combination of all of the above, it paid off big time for the Cyclones, whose nearly impeccable record made them a top-seeded contender when the playoffs came around. The team blew through its playoff competition with an energy that surprised even the players themselves. They easily surpassed their dreams of a county title, instead going all the way to the top.
We had never won a single game at Hofstra while I-ve been on the team, said Riley, and this year we won the state championship there!
The Cyclones have the potential to successfully defend their title next year, with a number of talented players expected to return. No matter what happens, though, the players will always have this first championship season to look back on, which, goalie Kennedy said, has made this, hands-down, the best year of my life.
