Can John Carroll halt Calvert Hall's 3-peat bid in MIAA A soccer
The favored Patriots enter the season with loads of talent; Severn looks to extend its reign in the MIAA B
Last year, when preseason rankings were unveiled in late August, defending MIAA A Conference soccer champion Calvert Hall was the clear choice to collect another crown.
The most serious obstacle in the Cardinals’ title path was John Carroll, ranked No. 2 by both Baltimore newspapers.
That prognostication turned out to have considerable merit after Calvert Hall produced a dazzling 24-0-1 campaign — with the Patriots (18-3-2) notching a 3-3 tie in early September when the Cardinals traveled to Bel Air — and topped John Carroll, 2-1, in double overtime in the championship match at UMBC Stadium in November.
As the 2023 season approaches, it’s the Patriots’ turn to be the frontrunner by virtue of returning a strong cast of grizzled veterans.
After all, senior-laden Calvert Hall graduated a huge percentage of its top players last spring, perhaps leaving the door open for a loaded John Carroll squad to bring home the program’s first-ever MIAA championship.
That said, nothing is a given and the Cardinals will be worthy contenders once again with Archbishop Curley, Loyola Blakefield, Archbishop Spalding, Gilman and McDonogh also in hot pursuit.
A season-ending injury to senior standout Cam Tolson, however, could make the Patriots a little less imposing, despite having seniors Christian Rugel, Joshua Petty, Austin Hoffmann, Andrew Dennard, Connor Ellis, Eddie Smith, CJ Supan, and Logan Boltz to rely on for hustle and leadership.
Moreover, with junior Amir Smith and senior Tyler Mezzadra splitting time in the goal, John Carroll’s extravagant experience level could be all of the edge coach Jim Fendryk’s club needs to prevail.
Fendryk added that being the hunted instead of the hunter won’t stop the Patriots from their mission.
“It really doesn’t change our approach much,” he said, noting that a pair of transfers, senior Charles Green (Calvert Hall) and junior Sam Duracka (C. Milton Wright), will add to the Patriots' depth “We just need to keep doing what we’re supposed to do with consistency and a high work ethic. It will be all about (focusing on) the next game and the next three points.”
That said, Calvert Hall won’t be that easy to depose, primarily because its midfield of seniors Rocco Pastore, Frankie Matucci, Mason Wakefield and Ryan Henneman and junior Dylan Issacs is as solid as it gets.
After being an understudy to Nate Jones, junior Drew Kaifer takes over goalkeeping duties for a team that could be even more dynamic if freshmen Elias Campbell and Alex Whitt are on the pitch this fall.
“We lost a ton of goals from last year’s team,” Calvert Hall coach Rich Zinkand said, alluding to Tyler Flynn (Penn State), Ben Madore (Penn State), Ryan Belal, Rich Monath (Delaware) and other top scorers. “We’ll have to find ways to manufacture goals this season.”
Although new Loyola coach Michael Marchiano hasn’t had much time to get to know his players, he likes what he sees from senior defensive midfielders Gavin Carmichael and Anthony Topolski, junior forward Sammy Walker, junior defender Ryan Andrews and junior midfielder Dan Klink enough to bring a smile to his face.
“We have an experienced group,” Marchiano said. “We have a good balance in terms of physical ability, style and technical qualities. That should help us to win some games.”
McDonogh figures to be in the mix as well, with four starting defenders back in the fold to complement senior midfielders Koby Keomany and Aidan Smith, junior midfielder Blake Lloyd and senior goalie Jason Broome.
Meanwhile, Archbishop Curley will make its presence felt with 2022 All-MIAA performers Nick Lentz (junior, defense) and Casey Price (junior, midfield) joining senior midfielders Andrew Throneburgh and Mason Landreth. Senior keeper Joe Yakim and sophomore midfielder Carter Clark will also be mainstays for veteran coach Barry Stitz’s side.
“We have a strong group of returners, and I’m excited about how well we’ve been playing,” said Stitz, whose team will be challenged to make up for the production lost when leading scorer Brady Geho (31 goals) graduated. “We do have to tidy up defensively — that was one of our biggest issues last year. But we should be in the mix.”
Archbishop Spalding is another team that could make some serious waves this fall, using the talent of senior goalie Clif Nehman, and seniors Declan Karney and George Ogilvie meshing with junior Kyle Crawford on a well-manned midfield unit.
Gilman, too, has ambitions of making the season a memorable one, unleashing what coach Jon Seal calls a “high-character group that is selfless and is maturing physically.”
Junior defender Grayson Capodanno and senior goalie George Guyton (Notre Dame lacrosse commit) should make the backline formidable while senior Michael Maloney (Marquette lacrosse), juniors Colin Broadbent and Kris Mitchell, sophomore Bashir Abou and freshman Sean Broadbent will take aim at the enemy goal.
Several of the coaches, including Seal, said that they are pleased now that four fewer conference matches are scheduled this season.
“It will give us a chance to get back to the basics and to teach our system of play,” he said. “It will allow us to train harder, too.”
In the B Conference, Severn looks to raise a third consecutive B Conference banner this season, matching its 2014-16 title run.
All things considered, the Admirals should get the early nod to do so even while having to contend with Boys’ Latin’s and St. Paul’s move back to the B.
Severn features eight starters back from last year’s champions — including seniors Alex Mussog, Matt Sotiropoulis, Andrew Beard and Hudson Lamb, and juniors Will Cawlfield and Nick Melfi.