This fall, the varsity soccer team won the Chagrin Valley Conference (CVC) championship with an overall record of 9-6-3. The team has won the CVC title for three of the last four years.

The season ended, however, after a loss of 4-1 to the Kirtland Hornets on Oct. 22.

“We were outplayed,” senior Noah Leavitt said, “but we stuck it out until the end and fought hard.”

Senior Julian Caputo scored in the last minute of the game.

The loss was painful, but it capped off a strong season. The team has consistently achieved excellence through dedication and hard work.

The team’s leading scorers this season were Asaf Roth with 15 goals and Junyoung Lee with 7 goals. Jared Goldhamer also had 77 saves as goalie and achieved shutouts during all regular season home games.

Seniors Goldhamer, Leavitt and Caputo, along with Zach Sperling have been selected to participate in the Ohio Varsity All Star Classic in November.

“This year, we actually worked together as a team, as opposed to having one person stand out,” Sperling said.

“Our biggest weakness was experience level. We had a lot of starters who were playing varsity for the first time,” Leavitt said.

Head Coach Brian Greene feels it is important for coaches and players to hold one another accountable.

 “I believe the players have the same ambitions as me since I provide them with the tools to achieve as much as possible,” Greene said. “I only push them as hard as they push me. My best teams demand more of me and make me a better coach.”

“The captains and the team set their goals, and I just try to help them achieve those goals,” Greene said. “I know that they set their sights on another league championship.”

In the beginning of the season, freshman Matthew Stovsky and sophomore Greg Israelstam set goals to prove themselves on the field.

“My goal is to be the best player I can be. I also want to be beneficial to the team,” Stovsky said. “I feel that I achieved my goals for the season because I made the varsity soccer team. That was the most important one to me,” he said.

“We got off to a rough start, but managed to bounce back,” Israelstam said.

“After the championship, we worked harder on the stuff we did wrong in the regular season,” freshman Griffin Davis said.

“The team shares a passion to win, but we all have fun while doing it,” Israelstam said.

Greene, who has been coaching the team since 1989,  hopes the players take one thing away from their experience. “I try to teach them to love and respect the game the same way I do,” he said.