Tuesday, November 11, 2025
After a hard-luck one win season riddled by injuries, the MacArthur boys’ soccer team has found its winning form in 2025.
The Generals entered the home stretch at 4-3-4-in Conference AA1 and positioned for a playoff spot with three matches left. MacArthur, which tied Jericho 0-0 last Friday, began the season with back-to-back losses but has only had one loss since then to place itself among the top three teams in its league with a number of comeback efforts.
“Things are really falling into place for us now,” said 14th-year MacArthur coach Andy Atkins. “We've solidified some issues we had earlier in the year and made some adjustments, and the kids are really stepping up.”
MacArthur’s offense has been bolstered by senior striker Nico Contreras, who has tallied five goals and one assist. The versatile Contreras, who also is moved to the midfield at times, struck for three goals in the Generals’ 4-1 win against Great Neck South on Sept. 25.
The Generals have multiple other scoring weapons including junior sweeper Matt Kobrin, who leads the team in points, sophomore forward Landon Pacheco, junior forward Gerald Molina and senior midfielder Abdelrahman Arafa.
“We're starting to pick up the scoring now,” Atkins said. “You can't really key on one player.”
In addition to his goal-scoring ability, Kobrin anchors the defense coming off an All County season as a sophomore. The backline also includes senior Dereck Acosta, junior Tristian Magnozzi, sophomore Frangotis and senior Nico Rodriguez.
Senior goalie Noah Molina has stepped up in net this season with plenty of big saves to keep MacArthur in games including 10 stops in a 1-0 loss at Long Beach on Sept. 27. “He's really coming into his groove now,” said Atkins of Molina, who has recorded two shutouts this season. He’s also a verbal leader on the backline.”
Seniors Vin Silvestri and Nick Nemeth along with freshman George Hakim have also been key to both sides of the ball with solid play in the midfield.
“It really has been a true team effort this season,” said Atkins “The guys have really stepped up and sacrificed for the betterment of the team.”
MacArthur concludes its regular season with a Thursday visit to Roslyn followed by a home match against New Hyde Park on Oct. 15 at 5 p.m. A top four conference finish would assure the Generals of reaching the postseason for the first time since the 2022 team advanced to the county semifinals.
“It's nice that we need to take care of ourselves and we're not relying on what other teams are doing to get in so it's in our control and we just have to seize the opportunity,” said Atkins, who guided MacArthur to a county title in 2014 just two years after taking over a program that had endured back-to-back winless seasons. “We’re getting better as the year goes on and now we're able to control our own destiny.”
