Nectar News - New York City High School Soccer Champions

New York City High School Soccer Champions

by Jonathan Pappas

Monday, 12 January 2009

The 2008 NYC PSAL (Public School Athletic League) soccer championship began in the same way as it had for the past 12 years - with the MLK Jr. High School Boys' Varsity team competing for the title. However, playing at the largest stage in high school soccer is not an unfamiliar feeling to MLK head coach Martin Jacobson, who has led his varsity boys' team to 13 straight championships, 11 of which he won.
"Coach Jake", as he's called by his players, has enjoyed an outstanding coaching career that spans 40 years, and includes being selected as head coach for New York in the Red Bulls High School Cup, an exhibition soccer match that pits the best outgoing seniors in New York against the best in New Jersey. But getting to the championship game this season may have been perhaps the biggest challenge of Jacobson?s highly-distinguished 15-year coaching career at the Upper West Side high school.
Coach Jake said, "It just goes to show that when you work hard, you can achieve anything you want ?to. To succeed in life, you need to focus on the goal, the desire, the passion, and you need to believe in yourselves."

Having lost twice during the regular season to top rival Beacon, an Upper West Side neighboring high school to MLK, "King" entered the playoffs with the 3rd overall seed. Beacon, on the other hand, was the top overall seed, after finishing 6th in the state. The Blue Demons came into the championship ranked #11 in the country by ESPN and had an undefeated record (15-0) along with all the momentum and confidence in the City.

After Beacon took a 1-0 lead off a goal from midfielder Caetano Sanchez with 21:30 left in the first half, the Knights bounced back when Moussa Diaby's right-footed shot found the back of the net, tying the game at 1-1 with 10 minutes left in the second half. Neither team scored again after that as the final seconds of regulation ticked off the game clock at Long Island University in Brooklyn on November 9.

The championship would now come down to a shootout, awarding MLK goalkeeper and team captain Malik Faye the opportunity to allow his team a chance to win; and never before was Faye as brilliant. The 6-3 senior shut down Beacon?s top scorers in successive attempts, while MLK junior forward Shane Hercules kicked a bullet past a diving Beacon goalkeeper Jesse Toporek, finding the top left corner of the net and scoring the game-winning goal. Final score: 4 (MLK) ? 1 (Beacon).

As Coach Jake recapped the 2008 season and championship game at the Awards dinner, he also invited several guests to share some words of inspiration to the crowd of about 50. The first speaker was Bouna Coundoul, professional Major League Soccer player with the Colorado Rapids. He played for MLK from 1998 - 2000, and was voted NYC player of the year, briefly discussed how achieving one's athletic dreams is something all athletes should aspire to but more importantly, it is receiving an education and doing well in school because then "anything is possible."

Other speakers included former MLK players Oral Bullen and Steven Amaya. Bullen, who is an MLK graduate, winner of New York City's Player of the Year in 2001 and currently plays with the New Jersey Ironmen in the professional indoor league. "When you work hard, you can achieve anything you want to," explained Bullen.

Amaya, who graduated from MLK in 2006 and currently plays for Hartwick College men's soccer team, added: "As King's returning players prepare for next fall and the seniors move on to play for their respective college teams, realize that every training session, (and) every match is an opportunity to create another memory. You must embrace every opportunity and continue to add to your count of memories for which you will be forever grateful and proud."

Assistant MLK coach Mickey Cohen, who coached alongside Jacobson in Red Bulls High School Cup, also had some encouraging words for his players. "This year's team was not as dominant as we were with Steven, Oral and Bouna,? said Cohen. "We lost to Beacon twice, were seated 3^rd in the City, and were shut out three times, which has never happened before. But throughout the season, we were able to pull ourselves together, persevere, and attain our goal of winning the city championship, which really says a lot about the determination of our players."

But Coach Jake summed up the night and perhaps the team's season-long attitude when he said, "Going to school, getting a good education, playing on a sports team, and working hard to succeed is what's important in life. Teamwork, collaboration, having a vision of what you want to accomplish, and then scoring your goal is something we all need to strive for, and this is something our team did this year."

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Axel LOPEZ said:

Fascinating story of inspiration. Congratulations to the kids and Coach Jake for another winning season. It is great to know that some of the previous King players came back to honor and share King's Soccer Legacy"
God bless All.

January 14, 2009

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