Mount Academy aims for state title
After sharing Class D title last season, Eagles look to have crown to themselves
Mount Academy feels confident as it prepares to face Section 5’s Charles Finney School in the the Class D boys soccer state semifinals at 1:45 p.m. Saturday at Marlboro High School.
Last year, the Eagles shared the Class D crown with Chazy in a 1-1 draw. This year’s trip to the final four is the team’s third in five years.
“It’s a big thrill for us. We’re really excited,” Coach Tom Huleatt said.
But Huleatt cautioned that everything needs to click for his team to win Saturday and get back to Sunday’s final.
“There’s not much room for error,” he said. “All the teams are at the top of the state level, and you just hope everybody has a really good day and does what they’ve been taught to do.”
The winner of the game will meet the winner of the other semifinal between Chazy of Section 7 and Marathon of Section 4. That contest will take place Saturday at 6 p.m. The championship game is scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 11, at 4:30 p.m. at Middletown High School’s Faller Field.
Reflecting back on the season, Huleatt said it was a pleasure to spend the season with his players and watch them grow together as a team, especially the seniors.
“For me, it’s a privilege to be the coach and also help them in life,” he said.
And along the way, the Eagles faced several injuries.
“It’s been a rough year for us for injuries. We definitely had our share of them,” Huleatt said. “We’ll just do the best we can now.”
Connor Huleatt was injured in the Mount’s 2-0 win over Fort Ann in last Saturday’s regional final while scoring the Eagles’ second goal. He will not be available this weekend.
Huleatt said his team hasn’t had a chance to look at the Falcons, but the Eagles expect them to put up a strong challenge.
Huleatt credited last
Saturday’s win to the team getting off to a good start and strong defensive play.
“They made a great defensive play in the goal that I think kind of set the tone, and the boys just applied what we taught them and they did very well,” Huleatt said.
Huleatt said during a recent practice that his squad is working on staying focused as Saturday approaches.
“Keep enough active work going on, yet not overdo it, we look forward to Saturday,” he said.
Handling many of the drills was George Vizvary, who coached SUNY Ulster twice from 1968-2010, with a 534-159-28 record, winning two National Junior College Athletic Association titles (1977, 1978), along with 17 Region XV championships and 24 Mid-Hudson Conference titles.
He also coached Albany from 1996-1999. More recently, he coached the semi-pro Kingston Stockade in its inaugural season in the National Premier Soccer League in 2016.
Vizvary has worked with the Eagles since the program’s beginning and he said each season the teams just keep getting better.
Vizvary said he’s impressed with how the the team’s defense played executing key headers and tackles while supporting one another.
Vizvary added that he is looking forward to the return of Jaden Rogers from an injury.
“We’re hoping he can give us 15-20 minutes,” Vizvary said.
Among six graduating seniors is center midfielder Preston Button.
Button said he’s excited to be back in the final four after the team played hard all season.
“We had a lot of injuries, and players stepped up,” Button said.
Buttonalso said he confident about this weekend, so long as everyone can pull together and believe in themselves.
“We didn’t get here without faith in ourselves,” Button said. “We’re optimistic about winning it.”
Left wing Aaron Waldner wants to win a state championship for Vizvary, who is 83.
“He shows up with energy and is a leader of the team,” Waldner said.
Waldner said the team can also count on a large contingent of supporters in the community.
Davis Mason said he feels a key part of winning both the matches this weekend that stand between Mount Academy and the state crown will be putting up the strong defensive front it showed against Fort Ann.
“We’ve been a solid team,” Waldner said.
Looking toward his final weekend playing soccer with the Eagles, goalkeeper Stuart Boller said he is impressed with how the team has taken on challenges this year.
“So far only in one our games have we been with all of the starters against Eldred,” Boller said.
In that match, Mount Academy blanked Eldred 5-0 to claim its fifth straight section title.