By Tom Jordan
Although the honor was anticipated by others, including coach Bob Bigelow, Roberti said it surprised her. "My dad said he knew a few weeks back, but I had no idea," she said on Tuesday. "I wasn't really expecting it at all. It's a great honor."
The All-American team consists of 167 girls and is determined through voting by members of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. Roberti will receive a certificate at the asssociation's annual convention in Indianapolis in January.
New of the honor reached Bigelow first, by mail, and Roberti didn't know about it until the coach made an announcement at the Cyclones' annual awards dinner last week. He wanted the whole team to share in the moment, which officially wasn't released nationwide until Dec. 4.
The gesture by Bigelow was fitting, because like most of Roberti's goals, the honor was made possible with the assistance of her teammates. The Cyclones fielded a supremely talented squad this year. Three players earned All-League honors, five received All-Class A recognition, and three -- seniors Roberti, Meredith Finch and Jessica Piccolo -- were chosen for the All-County team. Junior Lissa Jaffa won Most Valuable Player honors at the state tournament in Rochester, where the Cyclones put the finishing touches on a 20-0 season with a 1-0 win over Rochester's own Webster High. They were the first state championship girls' soccer team to finish undefeated and were ranked No. 4 nationally in a poll of the coaches association. Bigelow is one of seven nominees for the association's National Coach of the Year award.
"I think the nice thing is that there was no jealousy or anything like that. They're a great team that way," Bigelow said of his players' response to Roberti's achievement. "Everybody was just really happy for her, and she was certainly deserving."
In addition to leading the team in scoring, Roberti was a team leader. She and Finch were co-captains of a team that carried three freshmen and eight sophmores on the roster. Just after the regular season ended in October, Finch had said that while Bigelow was responsible for the X's and O's, it was up to the seniors to keep the young team focused throughout the upcoming playoff run. The seniors then led the way as the Cyclones blew to the top of the New York State soccer world again, winning the ninth championship for South Side since 1987.
"I like to let the captains kind of take over," Bigelow said. "The first thing I told them at the start of the season was that it was their team, not mine."
Roberti is not entirely ready to leave. She has not yet decided where she will attend college, but thinks her time as a Cyclone will benefit her wherever she chooses to play next.
"I'll miss it a lot. It hasn't really sunk in yet that there are no more games to play," she said. "But I'll take my experiences with me, wherever I go."
Bigelow said that as co-captain, Roberti often took the initiative in running practices and addressing the team before big games. "Whenever she started a meeting, I would get off the bus," he said. "Whatever was said was their little secret."
This time, Bigelow had his own little secret, if only for a short time: Liz Roberti is an All-American.
