HSMSE boys soccer pulls through

The Dragons / Thomas Henning

The HSMSE boys’ soccer team had a rough start for their 2012 season. In their struggle the team learned to grow, develop strong skills, and work as a team throughout the season. As a result of this, they were able to pull through and make it to the playoffs.

Being under .500 in their first six games was rough for the team. “The team wasn't taking losses well,” said team captain Harry Cummins. Players were taking their frustrations out on other teammates making teamwork a difficult task.

The team suffered a huge blow in their loss to Hunter after they blew a 2-0 lead. “It was hard to get back up,” Cummins said. He said the team played better after a speech from their coach. "[Coach] Diunte sat us down, and said that we are a team, we lose together and win together. I think we really took that talk to heart.”

The team made it to the playoffs, proving that the team could make it without their star players from last season, Julian Petrello and Kevin Chun. They showed they can work together and exemplify major teamwork. When asked about the growth of the team, senior Raven Roberson said, “It took some maturity time to get to that point."

Key players contributed to the team's ability to get to the playoffs. Cummins lead the team in scoring and Jeremy Wain Hirschberg was a force at goalie, making 69 saves throughout the season.

The team fell in the first round to the eventual  2012 champions, New Utrecht. Despite their loss, next season looks promising. "I see a lot of freshmen, sophomores, and juniors. They are a lot better than me when I was that age," said Cummins.

Contributed by Dionys Gutierrez