The finest Huntington High School boys’ soccer team in more than two decades has led to post-season honors for several Blue Devil players.
Huntington co-captains Lee Reiver and Jeremy Gelb were named to the All-Conference team after the seniors turned in sensational seasons. Juniors Wilson Martinez and Scott Gulizio were recognized as All-League. Senior Alexander Castillo earned a spot on the Academic All-County team.
The Blue Devils enjoyed a fabulous fall, advancing to the Suffolk Class AA final four. An improbably post-season run was stopped in overtime in the county semi-finals by Central Islip, 1-0. Huntington was bidding to advance to its first boys’ soccer championship game since 1971 when it lost to North Babylon, 3-0. The Blue Devils and Center Moriches were county co-champions in 1963 and 1964 after the teams played to overtime ties in both years.
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The 24-player team compiled an overall record of 10-5-5 under head coach John Pagano and assistant coach Jason Suarez. Reiver notched 10 shutouts as the team’s goalie. Gelb, who captured All-Conference honors for the second consecutive season, was not only able to score several goals and assist on many others, but he played exceptional defense, too.
Gulizio “was the best shutdown defender in the league,” Pagano said. Martinez was one of the top midfielders in the league, supporting Huntington’s offensive and defensive specialists and controlling huge areas of the field. Castillo was still another talented midfielder, who played a crucial role in the Blue Devils’ post-season success.
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“It is really difficult to go a day without thinking about the soccer season,” Revier said. “We still receive compliments from peers and many others about what we accomplished. This really lets us know that although we didn’t make it all the way, we still achieved much more than was expected and we truly put Huntington soccer on the map. This season was one that my teammates and I will never forget. I hope the program can really build off of what we did. It was such an exciting season for the team and our supporters and we all truly learned how important team chemistry is if a team wants to succeed.”
“This was the finest team that I have had,” Pagano said. “We made it to the county semi-finals for the first time since 1989.” The Blue Devils advanced to the Final Four after turning back No. 18 Comsewogue, No. 2 Half Hollow Hills West and No. 10 Hauppauge all by identical 1-0 scores.
With only five starters returning next fall, the Blue Devils have much work to do in the off-season. The competition will once again be fierce. Pagano said that Huntington plays in “perhaps the toughest league in Suffolk.”
Blue Devil Notes: German exchange student TJ Becker scored nine goals for Huntington . . . “He gave us instant offense,” said Pagano about Becker coming out for the team . . . The Blue Devils’ five losses all came by one goal . . . Huntington dropped two 1-0 contests to Hills West and also lost 1-0 to East Islip and Central Islip, the latter coming in the Suffolk Class AA semi-finals in overtime . . . The Blue Devils lost to Hauppauge, 2-1 before later tying the Eagles, 2-2 on Senior Day at Blue Devil Field and then toppling them in the county quarterfinals, 1-0.
