Pearl River Returns Veteran Boys Soccer Team

Pearl River's senior class knows what it is to be part of a strong team.

The Pirates were 15-2-1 when they were sophomores.

Then the injuries hit in 2010 and Pearl River fell to 7-9-1, but still won a playoff game before falling to Harrison.

"We have these guys in their third year playing varsity soccer," Pearl River Head Coach Damon O'Keefe said. "They were on a successful team as sophomores. Hopefully, they learned from that and they can have the same senior year as those guys.

"Last year, the focus was not to be mediocre, but with all the injuries, we just had a tough time putting a strong 11 out there."

Pearl River should have no such problem if the Pirates can stay healthy this season, with nine of 11 starters returning and three other players who started at least part-time. O'Keefe is hoping improved maturity will come with another year's experience. He is also hoping for an improved offense.

"We have very good soccer knowledge," O'Keefe said. "A lot of these guys play year round. This front seven, they posses the ball very well. The problem last year, at times, was finishing. We are already working on that a lot."

Senior forward Alex Castillo is a top offensive threat, with over 20 goals the last three seasons. O'Keefe said that when the injuries hit, it allowed opponents to simply double and triple-team Castillo. Senior Mike Dinci also returns at forward.

"Hopefully, with the guys we have coming back, we can get him some help," O'Keefe said.

Junior Giovanne Galvano and senior Alex Zbar are standouts in the midfield.

"(Zbar) is a highly skilled player who moves in transition well," O'Keefe said. "(Galvano) is one of the best skilled kids in our county."

Jared Schlosser and team co-captain Connor McIntyre are at the outside midfield spots.

Pearl River's other co-captain, Sam Berry, returns after suffering a season-ending injury during the 2010 season to anchor the defense at sweeper. Senior Jake Tedesco is also a key defender at stopper.

Justin Cueva returns in goal. He was another player who was hurt last year. He broke his thumb during Pearl River's playoff victory over Pelham, then missed the season-ending loss to Harrison.

Pearl River will open the season 4 p.m. today at Ramapo, the first of four consecutive non-league games against bigger schools, to be followed by Clarkstown South, Suffern and North Rockland.

"I always like a difficult schedule," O'Keefe said. "We set a goal for the beginning of the year, such as a league title and a section title. One goal is how we do against the AA schools. If we can fare well against them, everything looks up going into the league.

"We feel as if we can definitely compete. Last year, even though the record doesn't tell it, every game we competed. We were not blown out. We couldn't get over the hump. We lost leads and whatnot. We're hoping that this year we can mature a little bit and take the next step together."

2011 Pearl River Boys Varsity Soccer Schedule

Day

Date

Time

Opponent

Location

Thursday

Sept. 8

4 p.m.

Ramapo

Road

Saturday

Sept. 10

11 a.m.

Clarkstown South

Home

Friday

Sept. 16

4 p.m.

Suffern

Home

Tuesday

Sept. 20

4 p.m.

North Rockland

Home

Thursday

Sept. 22

4 p.m.

Nyack*

Road

Saturday

Sept. 24

11 a.m.

Albertus Magnus*

Home

Monday

Sept. 26

4 p.m.

Nanuet*

Home

Friday

Sept. 30

4 p.m.

Spring Valley*

Road

Tuesday

Oct. 4

4 p.m.

Tappan Zee*

Home

Thursday

Oct. 6

4:15 p.m.

Nyack*

Home

Monday

Oct. 10

1 p.m.

Lakeland

Home

Wednesday

Oct. 12

4 p.m.

Albertus Magnus*

Road

Friday

Oct. 14

4 p.m.

Nanuet*

Road

Tuesday

Oct. 18

4 .m.

Spring Valley*

Home

Thursday

Oct. 20

4 p.m.

Tappan Zee*

Road

Saturday

Oct. 22

4 p.m.

Clarkstown North

Road

*-- League game