By Alex Frazier
Meet…Kyle Soroka
Kyle Soroka bleeds soccer.
No wonder. He grew up with two older brothers, Eric, 25, and Ryan, 20, who is now junior at St. John’s.
“Ever since I came out of the womb, I’ve been around soccer,” he said.
He was introduced to the game formally at the age of five. For the past five years, he has been playing for the prestigious FC Delco club team. The past three years his team has gone to nationals, placing second three years ago and third the past two years.
“We’ve been one of the most successful clubs there (at Delco),” said Soroka.
No wonder he is ready when the high school season comes around.
Soroka is a four-year varsity starter at Neshaminy, this year playing center back.
He tried midfield on his Delco team, but found he was better suited in the back.
“I love it back there,” he said.
“I may be going out on a limb, but he’s probably the best defender in our league, for sure,” said Neshaminy coach Rich Reice. “He’s tenacious, he’s got very good field sense; he can distribute the ball well and can dispossess guys with the ball pretty easily.”
Reice compares him to a free safety in football that sits back and strips people of the ball.
“He’s confident when he’s back there that things are going to get done,” said Reice. “He doesn’t make mistakes, a very heady player.”
Soroka is a captain this year and leads by his great attitude.Even with 14 other seniors on the team, he doesn’t feel too much pressure to keep his friends in line.
“It’s a lot of responsibility, getting all your teammates up for games and up for practices, and off the field,” he said. “I feel privileged to get it. I just step it up one more step and do what needs to be done.”
Soroka is also captain of his Delco team.
“Everything is all about the team and not about him,” said Reice.
Next year Soroka will attend Villanova on scholarship.
“I went to the campus one day and fell in love with it that day,” he said. “I really didn’t change my mind. Soccer is up and coming. They have a new coach that’s turning it around. It feels like the best fit for me. The coach and I have had a good relationship so far. Besides the soccer, Villanova is a great school.”
He plans on majoring in some aspect of business.
The Redskins are missing two great players from last year in Cody Antonini, National Conference Player of the Year, and goalkeeper Dave Brous, but with Soroka in the backfield, Neshaminy will once again be in the top echelon come district and state playoff time.
“We have experience,” said Soroka. “If we play up to our potential, we can beat anyone; but like any team, if we don’t play to our potential, we can lose to anyone. “
Homecoming at Quakertown –Cesar Garrido has a soccer resume as long as a yardstick.
The veteran coach returns to Quakertown this year (he was an assistant there in 2004), where he replaces Mike Zackon, one of his former players at Pennridge. Zackon left Quakertown to pursue classes and be an assistant at Moravian College.
“I enjoy it,” said Garrido. “It’s always a challenge. Every year is different.”
Garrido started coaching in the SOL at Pennridge, where he was head coach from 1994-98. Another of his former players there, Peter Valimont, took over as the Rams’ coach this year. Ironically, the two will face each other twice in league games.
Between Pennridge and the present, Garrido has been running a winter clinic of his own, involving a four-team league. He has also coached Hilltown United, the Ukrainian Nationals (where he still coaches) and the Palisades U-18 girls.
Ironically, as coach of the Ukrainian U-15 team, he is developing players who may come back to haunt him, as they will attend schools like C.B. East, West, Pennridge, Souderton and Hatboro-Horsham.
In his very first week of practice, Garrido had to deal with an untimely tragedy. During practice, freshman Shawn Duffy collapsed on the field.
“I knew he was in trouble right away,” he said. “Anytime you see a young man going down, you get scared.”
Duffy was rushed to the hospital, where he later succumbed.
“He was very close to a lot of the players,” said Garrido. “He had some skills. He was a special boy.”
Garrido and his staff were in the process of deciding if he would make varsity or not.
“He was small but his skills were good,” he said. “We were debating what to do with him.”
Doctors still don’t have an explanation.
“They did an autopsy and it was inconclusive,” said Garrido.
The new Panther coach knows he has a tough challenge ahead with Quakertown moving into the very tough Continental Conference. In addition to being the smallest school in the league, Quakertown is also at a disadvantage because its players don’t have the same experience with select club teams as players on other teams do. Garrido is hoping to change that.
His goal for this year is to be competitive. He has a few good players to work with, namely senior goalkeeper Tyler Oates, senior forwards Josh Burnside and Zach Smith, senior center halfback Jake Woodard (who may miss some of the season with a hairline fracture) and junior defender Brent Landis.
“We have some good players and hopefully we can be competitive,” said Garrido. “It’s going to be very challenging, and the guys know that.”
Around the league – A couple of teams that have struggled in the past are enjoying a positive start to the new season. Norristown’s Dave Lovecchio pumped in three goals to lead the Eagles past Ridley, 4-2.
• New head coach Nicholas Severini has his Plymouth Whitemarsh squad off to a fast start. The Colonials went undefeated at the Avon Grove tournament, and beat Haverford High and Archbishop Carroll in preseason. At the opening day Shipley Labor Day tournament, the Colonials finished second, defeating Shipley 1-0 before falling to Conestoga in the championship.On Tuesday, the Colonials tied former league rival Quakertown 2-2.
•C.B. East passed its first big test of the year Wednesday in its season opener, when the Patriots defeated visiting Holy Ghost 1-0 on a Sean Peckham goal in the 94th minute. The Firebirds were coming off an impressive 2-0 win over perennial Catholic League power LaSalle. Goalie Jake Pickering, who was playing with a sprained ankle, came up with seven saves.
• With Dan McNamara’s second-half goal, Council Rock North remains unbeaten in three contests (2-0-1) as the Indians defeated Germantown Academy 2-1 Wednesday.
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