Boys’ Varsity Soccer is having its best season in years as the boys have one loss to this point in their season. The boys have played well in every game, even looking dominant in games against Cheshire Academy, Westminster, and Trinity-Pawling. Captains Sebi Barquin ’18 and Zach Lopes ’18 have led this very talented team to a 11-1-4 record that includes big victories over Northfield Mount Hermon and Hotchkiss.
Choate beat Hotchkiss 1-0 on Parents’ Weekend in front of its largest crowd of the year. The Choate boys took a lead into the first half after they capitalized on a mistake by the Hotchkiss goalie. Goalie Julius Chiang-Boeckmann ’19, who missed the beginning of the season due to injury, played an outstanding game that included a stretch in the second half where he made several jaw-dropping saves to keep Choate ahead. The game up at NMH was supposed to be one of the more difficult games this season, as NMH is a very talented team and as Choate had a long bus ride up. The team managed to squeak out a 1-0 win against NMH. Stephen Antogiovanni ’20 poked the game winner past the keeper on a 2 on 1 in the second half with Dilibe Iloeje ’18. The team has had such great success because of its depth and leadership.
Every single person has contributed to this team’s success. Lopes, Joey Waters ’18, Mike Levene ’18, and Tyler Redlitz ’19 form a formidable backline, which has contributed to the team surrendering only 8 goals all season. Gil Salzman ’21 filled in for Chiang-Boeckmann while he was injured, and he did an excellent job in goal. Midfielders Barquin and Brendan Kish ’19 have helped this team control the ball and move it upfield.
The team has high expectations for the Deerfield game this season, and it should be confident because it has played so well all year, and this year’s Deerfield team isn’t as strong as it normally is. Deerfield has played some of the same teams as Choate this season, but it has had some very different results. Deerfield lost an away game 1-2 to the same Hotchkiss team that Choate beat. Choate tied Worcester Academy 1-1 in a game where it outplayed Worcester but couldn’t finish its scoring opportunities. Deerfield lost 2-4 to the same Worcester team. This Deerfield team is capable of surprise, and it can win a game when it needs to. It showed this in its game against Kent, in which it won 2-0, while Choate tied Kent 1-1.
The Choate boys tend to play well in the Deerfield Day game, and over the past few years, they have shown up in the big game. In 2015, the game ended as a 2-2 tie after Choate scored with 2 minutes remaining, and Deerfield responded with a goal shortly after. Last year Choate managed to win the game 1-0. Although the past few years may suggest that this game is going to be a close one, with the Choate team looking so strong this season, it has to be optimistic going into the game.