Twenty-eight Travel teams at Webster Soccer Association (WSA) have had a busy 2006-2007 season as part of the Rochester District Youth Soccer League (RDYSL). With each WSA Travel team playing twelve RDYSL games, WSA played a total of 336 Travel games this season. WSA showed very well with a 153-107-52 season (this record does not include the twenty-four games played at the U10 level since scores are not kept in RDYSL for U10).

The WSA Director of Coaching U11-19, Yuri Lavrynenko, and WSA Goalkeeper Coach, Erin Zoltoski, are happy to report a successful overall season. Per Lavrynenko, "Many of the WSA teams enjoyed a successful season. The players worked hard during the winter season by doing extra indoor sessions with the team and many members participated in numerous YLS Academies, camps, and clinics. Additionally, the goal keepers took advantage of the specialized goal keeper training. It is a pleasure to see so many players improve and enjoy the results their hard work has produced."

In addition to the hard work and the successes throughout the season, several of the teams and players organized community service projects and volunteered time helping out with soccer.

The GU11-Green, coached by John Piampiano and Chris Diehl, spent an afternoon visiting and enjoying soccer with the residents at the local Maplewood Nursing Home during the February winter break.

Another team, the BU11-Green team coached by Katie Titus and Dave Derleth, rallied together in December to donate toys to CURE Childhood Cancer. The fun continued for this team in June when they celebrated their first place victory at the WSA Lakefront Classic tournament by enjoying dinner at Coach Titus’s house and then watching a BU16 game at WSA’s Boulter Championship Field. Per Coach Titus, “We had a very successful year and the boys came together as a team on and off the field. Eight of the players had never played Travel before and eight players returned from last year. It was a great season!

In addition to trained Facilitators and certified Coaches, the following Travel players donated their time to help teach the younger Micro Soccer players soccer skills on Saturday mornings:  Avery Gnolek, Andy Lucarelli, Steve Mele, Nathan Parker, Jesse Sengillo, Matt Solimano, and Victor Vysochan. 

Kyle Hackett, who is a goalie for both the WSA BU17-Green team and the Thomas High School varsity team, assisted with the BU14-Gold team throughout year. Kyle spent a lot of time helping with drills and goalie training. His younger brother, Jeremy Hackett, enjoyed a successful season as the BU14-Gold goalie. 

In addition to the twelve RDYSL games, the WSA teams participate in the WSA Lakefront Classic in June and usually play in several out-of-town tournaments during spring and summer.

The GU12-Green team, coached by Tim Mason, enjoyed the Clifton Park tournament (where they finished in the quarter finals), the WSA Lakefront Classic, and the Brockport International Soccer Festival (where they finished as Finalists).

The BU10-Green team, coached by Mark Buckley, participated in the WSA Lakefront Classic in June. In July they traveled to Syracuse to participate in the Salt City Invitational soccer tournament where they won all four games.

Other WSA highlights included the GU14-Green team coached by Dave Hill. The team finished second place in the RDYSL GU14 Division 1 (playing up) with a 6-4-2 record. They also finished second in the Upstate Travel League. Additionally, the team entered the State Cup competition, losing by one goal in the preliminary round to Buffalo United. WSA Green took first place in two of the three Travel tournaments that they entered this year. Per Coach Hill, “The season was very successful for our team and I know the girls had a lot of fun.”

The WSA GU11-Green finished 2007 with a 5-6-1 record. Coach Piampiano admits, “On the surface, this record does not seem overly impressive, but the team won their final three matches and climbed up the standings from last place to finish third at season’s end.” The team played in RDYSL Division 1. Piampiano continued, “The team added seven new players at the start of the season and required some time to find a rhythm, but really clicked as the season progressed.”

In addition to their RDYSL performance, the GU11-Green sought out better competition by traveling to the "Shoot-for-the-Cure" all girls tournament in Montgomeryville, PA. The team faced three premier teams from Philadelphia, defeating one 3-2, tying one 3-3 and losing 2-0 to the eventual champion. This was a very good early showing, particularly given that the team was forced to play 11v11 on full size fields (RDYSL plays 9v9 on smaller fields at this age). The team followed that performance by winning the WSA Lakefront Classic, allowing only one goal in four matches. The team then traveled to Oneonta for the "Legends of Summer" tournament at the soccer hall of fame. In a very exciting and intensely fought championship game the team lost in double overtime. Coach Piampiano stated, “The team worked very hard all year and demonstrated a very sound, possession-oriented style of play that will serve them well in 2008.” In addition to their on-field successes, the team also rounded out the season by playing a scrimmage at half time of a Womens Rhinos match in July.

The GU15-Green, coached by Todd Ewing and Dallas Huff, also had an exciting season. They finished in fourth place in the RDYSL GU15 Division 2 with a 6-5-1 record and they made it to the finals of two tournaments (lost to points at Irondequoit Challenge Invitational and lost to shoot-out at Salt City Invitational soccer tournament). The team Manager, Sarah Stein, shared, “The team had a great time at the Salt City tournament in Syracuse on July 28-29. They played awesome and deserve recognition for making it into the championship game. In the semi-final game they beat the number one seed 1-0 in overtime then they lost in the championship game in penalty kicks. The girls played their best all weekend and gave it everything they had...each one of them!”

The BU12-Green team finished in first place in the RDYSL BU12 Division 1 with an impressive 11-0-1 record. Tournament successes included first place at Amherst Tournament (Amherst, NY), first place at Brockport International Soccer Festival (Brockport, NY), and second place at WSA Lakefront Classic. Per Coach Buckley, “Overall the team compiled a 22-1-2 record. Best of all, the boys continued to have fun this year by enjoying several parties and team events to celebrate the game of soccer.”

The BU13-Green team, coached by Jorge Alvarez and Scott Lawlor, finished in first place in the RDYSL BU13 Division 1 with a 10-0-2 record. Per Coach Alvarez, “It was a great season with an overall record of 21-1-3. The boys played really well together.” Tournament Results included first place in Division U14 at WSA Lakefront Classic, first place at the Brockport International Soccer Festival, and second place at the Salt City Invitational soccer tournament.

The BU15-Green team, coached by Chuck Hilbert and Jim Masacre, finished strongly in second place in a very competitive RDYSL BU15 Division 1 with a 7-2-3 record. Total overall season record was 17-4-6. The team played up in Irondequoit Challenge Invitational in the U16 Division and tied for first place. They played up in the Webster Lakefront Classic in the BU16 Division and tied for second place. The team won both the Spencerport and Brockport tournaments. Other highlights included having a league game in June at PAETEC Park (won 1-0 against Spencerport) and placing one of the players on the Premier Elite team at the U15 level.

The BU16-Green team, coached by Carmine Torchia and Bob Johnson, may have had the most exciting year. They finished in first place in the RDYSL BU16 Division 1 with an 8-2-2 record. Tournaments included (with an 8-1-2 record) Greece (Champions), WSA Lakefront Classic, Gates Youth Soccer Tournament and Festival (Champions). Overall season record was 16-3-4. The highlight was probably the trip to Germany which thirteen of the players (plus one guest player from the WSA BU15 team, Eric Price) experienced. It was a wonderful 13-day trip to Germany. Numerous soccer games and much sightseeing were enjoyed. One of the German host families reported, “It is only four hours ago that your young soccer team left Wolfratshausen (near Munich/Bavaria) and we already miss them! It was a great experience for us, the guest families, especially for our children.”

Pat Cusato, WSA President, remarked, “We have had a very good year at WSA. While the successful records are a great way to mark the season, it’s even more important to appreciate all the hard work and extra time that the players put in to enhance their skills and the wonderful support of our talented coaches and dedicated managers. The players are also fortunate to have the opportunity to work throughout the year with our Directors of Coaching, Yuri Lavrynenko and Malcolm Kersey. We’re lucky to have such a great club of talented players and volunteers.”