Two Dartmouth soccer teams win state titles
Jun 28, 2021
The Girls 12+ team took one of two Dartmouth titles. Back row, from left: Coach Nelson Furtado, Jillian Swass, Ellie Cook, Aaliyah Padilla, Monica Eires, Kyleigh Wheaton, Hannah Wheelden, Taylor Oliveira, Kathryn Seguin, Amaya Marshall Assistant Coach Carlos Freitas.
Front row from left: Annika Furtado, Sophia Gioiosa, Alyssa Araujo, Randi Medeiros, Savannah Freitas, Sabrina Pires, Erin Good
Photos by: Dartmouth Youth Soccer Association FC
The Girls 9-11 Division 1 team won a state title. Back row from left: Assistant Coach Lee Cojocaru, Alexandra Cojocaru, Ella Pacheco, Bridget Markey, Mira Herlihy, Katie Smith, Sophie Caldwell, Alexia Almeida, Maryellen Silvia, Gabriella Santos, Coach Joe Santos, Assistant Coach Raquel Santos. Front row from left: Olivia Santos, Aileen Boyle, Amanda Zatir, Jenna Mello, Grace Geiger, Erin Mello, Maddie Wright, Kaylin Rutkowski, Julia Downey. Not pictured is Kylie DaCosta
Girls 9-11 Division 2 team made the finals and won the sportsmanship award. From left: Assistant Coach Kristy DeSouza, Justine Raposa, Aniyah Mendes, Ava Costa, Hailey Martins, Jillian Hughes, Coach Jeremy Costa, Adeline Ablett, Isabelle Seguin, Lauren Kiser, Emma Green, Lindsey Klein, Coordinator Derek Oliveira. Front row from left: Hannah Rosa, Ava Oliveira, Makayla DeSouza, Nina Cunha, Sydney Medeiros, Makai Vincent, Sarah Kelly.
Two teams representing Dartmouth Youth Soccer Association’s FC program took state titles June 27 at the weekend-long state championship tournament, known as the Massachusetts Tournament of Champions, in Lancaster.
FC is a competitive program within the Dartmouth Youth Soccer Association.
The Grade 12+ Girls and the Grade 9-11 Girls Division 1 teams became state champions after their games Sunday.
The Grade 12+ Girls won their final over Walpole by a score of 2-0, while the Grades 9-11 Girls Division 1 team defeated Littleton, 5-2.
The Grade 9-11 Girls Division 2 team came within a goal of the title, losing 1-0 to Shrewsbury by way of a late score in the second half, said Dennis Leary, Dartmouth’s FC director.
Although they fell just short of the championship, that team was awarded the Sportsmanship Award by the tournament’s Sportsmanship Committee. The award is given to teams that demonstrate respect for fellow players, coaches, spectators, and referees and is a coveted honor, Leary said.
Dartmouth fielded the most teams of any community in Massachusetts, Leary said, with eight squads represented. Dartmouth FC won eight South Coast Soccer League Championships this spring, earning them the invitation to represent the league at the state level.
About 144 league championship teams, ranging from grades 5 through 12+, represented 93 different Massachusetts towns.
“Making it to MTOC is a tremendous achievement within itself,’’ Leary said. “Once there, teams are facing the best of the best that town programs can offer. To make it through the group stage and into the finals, as three of the teams did, requires a special chemistry of dedication, teamwork, and coaching to make it happen.”
Teams worked hard for their wins, he said.
“The weather conditions for finals on Sunday equated to the classic New England triple “H” (hazy, hot, and humid),’’ Leary said. “Those conditions, and the fact that the teams needed to play back-to-back semi-finals and finals at midday,’’ represented a “physically daunting task’’ for the players.
“It was a great experience to be a part of,’’ he said. “At one point there were three games going on and they all had Dartmouth teams playing in them.’’
That was, he said, “a proud moment for the club.”
