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Though neither varsity soccer teams won Massachusetts Bay Independent League (MBIL) championships this season, the boys and girls teams earned coveted Class D NEPSAC bids.
Even without a repeat league title, girls soccer clinched a #6 NEPSAC seed, and tomorrow the team is set to travel to Connecticut to compete against #3 seed Hamden Hall.
Head Coach Brian Purcell feels confident about tomorrow’s game.
“I feel like it’s going to be a very challenging game, but I feel like our team is more prepared this year than ever before going into a NEPSAC game, “he said.
Lead by Co-Captains Shani Breiman ’18, Kimberly Santos ’18, and Sophie Lapat ’18, the squad put forth another strong season in the MBIL, going 10-6-1.
Unfortunately, the girls suffered a heartbreaking 2-1 loss in the league championship against Montrose. Last year, the Gators defeated Montrose 3-1 at home for the league title.
“We won the championship last season, so it’s a bit disappointing that we didn’t repeat,” said Breiman, who scored 147 goals in fours of playing on the squad, the most in School history. “But the loss doesn’t take away from all of the great wins and growth we experienced this season. It was especially great to tie against Newton Country Day, who plays in a more competitive league.”
For its part, boys varsity soccer ended with a third place finish in the MBIL, good enough for the #8 NEPSAC seed.
“It’s just an honor to be selected for the tournament and as the 8th seed the pressure is off of us,” said Head Coach Chris Hardman. “If we do well, it will be a big deal. I’m just happy to be playing November soccer.”
The team finished its season 12-4-2, earning third in the league. Of particular note, Co-Captains Grant Iuliano ’18, Matthew Hastings ’18 and Tyler Best led the team to an 11-game winning streak. The biggest victory came earlier in the season with a 4-2 win over Dexter, which competes in a higher league.
Last year, the squad earned its strongest season since 2012, finishing with a 13-6 regular season record, losing to Gain Academy in the league semifinal match.
“The season didn’t end the way we wanted it to, but we played hard and we hope to come back even stronger during the 2018 soccer season,” said Ben Ernest ’19, a leading scorer.
During the semi-final league game, the Gators suffered a tough 1-4 loss against against Boston Trinity Academy.
The Gator wishes both teams luck as the head into tomorrow’s games.
– Matthew Hastings ’18 and Michael Donahue ’18 contributed to this article.
