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Sports

Fall Sports Preview: Amity Boys Soccer Motivated to Succeed

Looking to improve on last year's performance; hoping their experience will help win the day.

Coming off a 0-14-2 season, Mike Marchitto begins his 10th season as Amity boys soccer coach knowing there is nowhere to go but up. While his Spartans went winless last fall, Marchitto insisted that was a result of inexperience rather than a lack of talent.

“Last year we were a very young team that had to play a tough 1A schedule,” he said. “This year is a totally different story. We have everybody back except Pat Kenefic, who graduated in June. So far in our first two scrimmages, I’ve seen a very close-knit, far more experienced team that has the potential to be very good. That experience my guys gained last year while losing has now become a major plus.”

Marchitto went on to insist that his booters are not down as a result of last year’s results. He felt it has become a motivation for them to play harder.

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He added, “In 2010, my guys were last in the Housatonic Division and in the Southern Connecticut Conference. This year they want to prove that they are not a last place team.”

Knowing that soccer teams are built from the goal out, Marchitto is delighted to have junior Noah Safian back in the net. He feels that Safian has last year’s experience, a big body and is also very talented with a significant about of athletic ability and the potential to develop into an outstanding net minder.

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Amity will line up defensively with junior Sam Dellert on the right joined by senior center backs Co-Captain Niko Koutromonus and Cameron Luth along with senior John Sutton on the left.

According to Marchitto, “I think we have a solid, veteran defensive unit. They work well together and should be tough to beat.”

Senior Co-Captain Eliot Demelier and promising freshman Dean Schwartz will be the Spartans’ starting center midfielders. They will be flanked by senior Jesse DePietro on the left and junior Sean Beaulieu on the right. Senior Rob Flango (who did not play soccer last fall) and junior Joe Guerra are the forwards that round out the starting line-up.

Marchitto sees senior Alex Neumann as a valuable and versatile asset coming off the bench.

“Our team doesn’t have a go-to scorer. Instead, we have a team that has a lot of different guys with the potential to score. Frankly, I think I think that will make us a better team as it will be harder for opposing teams to defend against us,” he added.

As usual, Cheshire and Shelton seem to be the teams to beat in the Housy with Amity far more dangerous that it was a year ago. Marchitto pointed to Hamden, Xavier, and Guilford as the cream of the SCC crop of teams.

He also said, “We want to end up one of the top 8 teams in the SCC and return to the conference playoffs and feel it would be wonderful to qualify for States. If we play well, I think we can be successful in reaching these goals. Our keys to success are hard work, determination, and the resilience to never give up. I honestly feel that if we stay focused and play consistent soccer for 80 minutes each game, we will be tough to beat.”

Amity opens its season hosting West Haven on Tuesday, Sept. 13, at 3:45 p.m.

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