Ryan Lindeman, left, leads Greece Athena with six goals and six assists. The Trojans are the new No. 1 in the Democrat and Chronicle’s large-school coaches poll.
Just two years ago, Greece Athena had never won a Section V title in boys soccer and the program had undergone a messy coaching change. Longtime coach Bill Hueber was ousted after two controversial votes by the board of education and Mike Butler, a veteran coach in the district in girls soccer and girls basketball, took over.
Two years later, the Trojans are two-time defending Section V Class A1 champions and also own the ultimate in their trophy case: the 2015 state crown. They’re also the new No. 1 team in the Democrat and Chronicle‘s large-school coaches poll (Class AA and A). Athena (6-0-1) moved up to take the spot of Rush-Henrietta (4-2), which promptly lost at Victor and Penfield after being anointed the area’s top team.
Rush-Henrietta is No. 1 in first D&C boys soccer poll
Athena has outscored opponents 20-8 but half of its wins are by a goal, so the Trojans have been far from dominant. In fact, they haven’t even registered a shutout. Senior midfielder Ryan Lindeman leads the attack with six goals and six assists, C.J. Takatch has four goals and Nick Visca three. Look for them to get by Aquinas (1-6-1) in a Wednesday night road match, but then comes maybe their biggest test to date. Athena plays at No. 3 Canandaigua (8-0-1) at 4:30 p.m. Friday. The Braves are no joke. Coach Mark Annesi’s squad has outscored teams 24-4 and is led by one of the area’s top scorers in senior forward Jonathon Brown (10 goals/4 assists).
Canandaigua, which moved up from No. 5, has never won a sectional title in boys soccer. It can stamp itself as a contender Friday.
There’s another big match on Wednesday, as McQuaid (7-1) plays World of Inquiry (7-0) at Franklin at 4 p.m. How big is the large-school/small-school gap? We’ll find out. McQuaid, under new coach Nino Pilato, is No. 5 among large schools and WOI is No. 1 among small schools for the second straight week. The Griffins have outscored teams, 44-4, but this will be their first match against a quality large school. Two-time All-Greater Rochester pick Toyi Hakizimana, a sophomore forward, has 13 goals and 9 assists and junior midfielder Ayub Jeylani has 17 goals and 3 assists for WOI.
Boys Soccer
Large-School Coaches’ Poll
1 – Greece Athena (4)
Record: 6-0-1
Points: 74
Previous rank: 2
2 – Fairport (2)
Record: 8-1
Points: 68
Previous rank: 4
3 – Canandaigua
Record: 8-1
Points: 60
Previous rank: 5
4 – Rush-Henrietta
Record: 4-2
Points: 48
Previous rank: 1
5 – McQuaid (2)
Record: 7-1
Points: 41
Previous rank: 3
6 – Webster Schroeder
Record: 4-2
Points: 33
Previous rank: 9
7 – Hilton
Record: 5-3
Points: 32
Previous rank: Unranked.
8 – Webster Thomas
Record: 3-2-2
Points: 29
Previous rank: 6
9 – Honeoye Falls-Lima
Record: 5-2
Points: 22
Previous rank: 8
10 – Victor
Record: 3-4
Points: 6
Previous rank: Unranked.
Also received votes: Irondequoit, Pittsford Mendon, Wayne.
Small-School Coaches’ Poll
1 – World of Inquiry (6)
Record: 7-0
Points: 68
Previous rank: 1
2 – Wayland-Cohocton
Record: 7-0
Points: 59
Previous rank: Unranked.
3 – Livonia
Record: 6-2
Points: 48
Previous rank: 2
4 – Byron-Bergen/Elba
Record: 6-0
Points: 38
Previous rank: Unranked.
5 – Bath
Record: 5-1-2
Points: 27
Previous rank: 8
6 – Mount Morris
Record: 7-0
Points: 26
Previous rank: 4
7 – Williamson
Record: 6-1
Points: 24
Previous rank: 10
8 – Alfred-Almond
Record: 6-0-1
Points: 18
Previous rank: 3
9 – UPREP
Record: 5-0
Points: 15
Previous rank: Unranked
10 – Keshequa
Record: 6-1
Points: 12
Previous rank: 6
Also received votes: Avoca, Genesee Valley, Holley, Mynderse, Naples, Pal-Mac.
Note: Large schools poll includes Classes AA and A; small schools includes all others B, C and D.