Boys Soccer: Hen Hud off to Hot Start

A first-half goal by junior striker Geo Rengifo and the solid goalkeeping of senior Abe Hannigan, who made eight saves, helped give Hendrick Hudson a 1-0 victory in its home opener against Kennedy Catholic Wednesday afternoon.

“At halftime, we talked about having heart and being physical,” Hannigan said. “Even though we may not be the most skilled team, we do have a lot of heart and that is what enabled us to win today.”

Giving Hen Hud (2-0) the lead before halftime was Rengifo, whose goal came early in the opening half. He registered his goal by streaking down the sideline and sending in a long shot that was perfectly placed over the goalie’s head and into the bottom left-corner of the goal.

“I wasn’t really thinking, I just had an opening down the field and I just took it,” Rengifo said. “It felt great to get off to a lead in our first home game. Since it was our first home game, we wanted to set the tone to a really good season and end it well.”

The Sailors ended things well thanks to Hannigan, who had to make an incredible leaping save late in the game to preserve the Sailors’ one-goal advantage. Kennedy Catholic appeared to have tied the game with a shot that looked ticketed for the top half of the goal.

However, before the ball could make it to the net, Hannigan leaped high in the air and punched the ball over the crossbar with his fist to help seal the Sailors’ victory.

“Abe is extremely talented,” Hen Hud coach Derek Kisslinger said. “He’s been a trained keeper for years. I am just so blessed to step into a situation with a world-class keeper. He keeps us in so many games. He gets to so many balls and on top of that he is a leader. He’s the guy that pushes the guys, he’s like another coach out there.”

Coaching soccer at Hen Hud is nothing new for Kisslinger as he also coached the varsity squad in 2000 in addition to coaching the JV in ’01, '02, '03, ’05, ’06 and ’07. Kisslinger, a 1989 Hen Hud graduate, also played varsity soccer at the school for two seasons.

“It’s always nice to be a part of a program where I have coached a lot of years,” Kisslinger said. “It’s a sport I enjoy coaching. It’s fun to be on the sideline, look across and see the school and know that I am here at my alma mater doing it. That makes it even more enjoyable.”

It’s especially enjoyable when you have the opportunity like Kisslinger does to coach a goal-scorer like Rengifo.

“He brings good speed and quickness from the striker position,” Kisslinger said. “He is dangerous. If we can lead him, he can get some breakaways like he did today. He’s got a strong foot and he is a finisher.”

Hen Hud won its first game on Sept. 3, 1-0 against Nanuet in the opening round of the Nanuet Tournament.

“We won two 1-0 games, they have been tight games but we have done enough good things to come out on top,” Kisslinger said. “We still have a lot of room to get better and we are going to have to because our league is a very tough league and we are going to have our work cut out for us.”