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Massapequa’s James Nealis Selected By Eastern Conference Champ Houston Dynamo in the MLS Draft

By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association

January 23, 2013-The Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) is very pleased that James Nealis from Massapequa Terminators United of the Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL) has been chosen in the 2013 MLS Draft at the Indiana Convention Center. As the 37th overall selection, Jimmy became the newest member of the Eastern Conference champion Houston Dynamo. A 6-0, 162-lb. midfielder/defender, he grew up playing with the Massapequa Soccer Club and also starred at Massapequa High School before moving on to a successful career at Georgetown University.

Jimmy started 71 matches at Georgetown, including every game over his last three seasons after breaking in as a part-time starter his freshman year. Over his time with the Hoyas, he tallied two goals and 15 assists, earned All-Northeast honors twice from the NSCAA, was named to the All-Big East team as a junior, and helped key the team’s run to the NCAA final this past season.

On Long Island, he was a four-year starter at Massapequa High School, finishing with 33 goals and 34 assists for his career. A three-time All-Conference and two-time All-State honoree, he was named the New York State Player of the Year as a senior in 2008. He played his club soccer with the Massapequa Terminators United for eight years, captaining the squad every season and leading the team to the 2007 Northeast Regional Premier League (NERP) Championship. A LIJSL Scholarship helped fund his education at Georgetown. Jimmy also played for the Long Island Rough Riders during the 2011 Premier Development League season.

Next up for Jimmy is training camp, which begins this week.

"I am super excited and can’t wait to get to camp," he said. "The Dynamo have had a lot of recent success and I look forward to learning from Dominic Kinnear."

The 21-year-old showed off his skills to the 19 MLS teams at the league’s combine in Lauderhill, Florida this month and Dynamo coach Dominic Kinnear obviously liked what he had seen.

"Jimmy is a good player and he showed well at the combine," Coach Kinnear said. "He is a left back who likes to attack. And from what we know about him we like and hopefully we’ll see more over the next couple of weeks."

With 123,843 youth soccer players––68,587 boys and 55,256 girls––and more than 25,000 volunteers, the non-profit Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) stretches from Montauk Point, Long Island to the Canadian border. Members are affiliated with 12 leagues throughout the association, which covers the entire state of New York east of Route 81. ENYYSA exists to promote and enhance the game of soccer for children and teenagers between the ages of 5 and 19 years old, and to encourage the healthy development of youth players, coaches, referees and administrators. All levels of soccer are offered––from intramural, travel team and premier players as well as Special Children. No child who wants to play soccer is turned away. ENYYSA is a proud member of the United States Soccer Federation and United States Youth Soccer Association. For more information, please log on to http://www.enysoccer.com/, which receives nearly 300,000 hits annually from the growing soccer community.

Defending National Champion Manhattan Paris Saint-Germain Win the Boys-Under-18 State Open Cup

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By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association

June 11, 2015-A State Open Cup final with the past two national champions is as rare an event as a solar eclipse. But on May 31 in LaGrange, the planets aligned and Manhattan Paris Saint-Germain, 2014 national champions, played Smithtown Arsenal, 2013 national champs, in the Boys-Under-18 State Open Cup final.

Before the big match, Smithtown coach Tom Lips said, “Manhattan is dynamic, they’re resilient and they are always in our way. And they would say the same thing about us.”

Manhattan’s Jack Harrison scored in the fifth minute, then Daniel O’Grady scored on a penalty kick plus Amara Sessay and Sam Farman scored insurance goals as Manhattan won, 4-0. Keeper Gerard Amigon had the shutout in goal.

This game was the fifth time these wonderful teams have met in the State Open Cup final. Manhattan, from the Westchester Youth Soccer District, beat the Long Island Junior Soccer League’s Smithtown twice in the final and Smithtown defeated Manhattan three times in the title game. Both teams have won the State Open Cup three times as Manhattan defeated Ramapo Valley in the 2014 championship match.

“I think we came ready to play and really wanted to win our third State Open Cup title,” commented Manhattan coach Wilson Egidio. “In preparing for Regionals, we went easy last week but picked up speed this week with a focus on fitness, then tactical work leading to the tournament.”

They will be playing in the Regionals from June 26 to 30 in Barboursville, West Virginia and received a $2,000 check from the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) to defray their costs during the National Championship Series.

Manhattan also received the Howard Rubinstein Sportsmanship Award for the Fair Play they displayed and will add that award to their overflowing trophy case.

With over 100,000 youth soccer players––both boys and girls––and more than 25,000 volunteers, the non-profit Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) stretches from Montauk Point, Long Island to the Canadian border. Members are affiliated with 11 leagues throughout the association, which covers the entire state of New York east of Route 81. ENYYSA exists to promote and enhance the game of soccer for children and teenagers between the ages of 5 and 19 years old, and to encourage the healthy development of youth players, coaches, referees and administrators. All levels of soccer are offered––from intramural, travel team and premier players as well as Special Children. No child who wants to play soccer is turned away. ENYYSA is a proud member of the United States Soccer Federation and United States Youth Soccer Association. For more information, please log on to http://www.enysoccer.com/, which receives nearly 300,000 hits annually from the growing soccer community.

NYSC Pre-Academy Take the Peter Collins Cup as Boys-Under-19 State Cup Champions

By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association

June 22, 2022-NYSC Pre-Academy topped Beekman United, 3-2, in a very exciting match on June 5 at Stringham Park in LaGrange to win the State Cup. As Boys-Under-19 State Cup champs, they received the Peter Collins Cup.

The cup’s namesake volunteered as Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL) President from 1977 to 2004, coached the Hicksville Minutemen to the Boys-Under-19 national finals and was a U.S. Soccer Hall of Famer and U.S. Soccer Life Member.

Mark Vollmer scored two goals and Tyler Cho added one for NYSC.

NYSC coach Shahab Langoudi explained, “We played a very good opponent who came back to tie the match, 2-2. NYSC has a unified game model, keeping the ball on the ground with possession and that helped us get our third goal and the championship.”

NYSC will represent Eastern New York at the East Regionals from June 24 to 30 in Charleston and Barboursville, West Virginia as part of the National Championship Series.

Beekman United received the Rocco Amoroso Sportsmanship Award as determined by the game officials. Amoroso, a US Soccer Life Member who died six years ago, started the LIJSL Sportsmanship Program in 1980 and it spread to Eastern New York, nationally and then to China and Ireland.

With approximately 100,000 youth soccer players––both boys and girls––and more than 25,000 volunteers, the non-profit Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) stretches from Montauk Point, Long Island to the Canadian border. Members are affiliated with nine leagues throughout the association, which covers the entire state of New York east of Route 81. ENYYSA exists to promote and enhance the game of soccer for children and teenagers between the ages of 5 and 19 years old, and to encourage the healthy development of youth players, coaches, referees and administrators. All levels of soccer are offered––from intramural, travel team and premier players as well as Children With Special Needs. No child who wants to play soccer is turned away. ENYYSA is a proud member of the United States Soccer Federation and United States Youth Soccer Association. For more information, please log onto http://www.enysoccer.com/

Success Academy Blue Receive the Boys-Under-11 Challenge Cup-Gold Championship

By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association

June 26, 2023-A school program from Harlem, Success Academy, won the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) Boys-Under-11 Challenge Cup-Gold by defeating Saratoga-Wilton Dortmund, 3-1. This championship game was played on June 3 at Stringham Park in LaGrange.

Success coach Bradley Williams said, “A great first half for us! Nervy after they scored a goal to make it 2-1 but we concentrated and rallied.”

Kai Shigemi scored two goals for Success and Allasone Zongo added one.

Saratoga-Wilton received the Rocco Amoroso Sportsmanship Award as determined by the game officials. Amoroso, a US Soccer Life Member who died in 2016, started the Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL) Sportsmanship Program in 1980 and it spread to Eastern New York, nationally and then to China and Ireland, making soccer games kinder and gentler in the process.

The Challenge Cup was presented by LifeVac, the choking rescue device that has saved over 900 lives and counting.

With approximately 100,000 youth soccer players––both boys and girls––and more than 25,000 volunteers, the non-profit Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) stretches from Montauk Point, Long Island to the Canadian border. Members are affiliated with 10 leagues throughout the association, which covers the entire state of New York east of Route 81. ENYYSA exists to promote and enhance the game of soccer for children and teenagers between the ages of 5 and 19 years old, and to encourage the healthy development of youth players, coaches, referees and administrators. All levels of soccer are offered––from intramural, travel team and premier players as well as Children With Special Needs. No child who wants to play soccer is turned away. ENYYSA is a proud member of the United States Soccer Federation and United States Youth Soccer Association. For more information, please log onto http://www.enysoccer.com/

Brittany Taylor Goes From Youth Soccer in Eastern New York to Pro Soccer in Western New York

By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association

May 30, 2013-Campbell Hall resident Brittany Taylor is seeing significant playing time as a defender with the Western New York Flash of the new National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL).

In the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA), Brittany played for the Washingtonville Lady Storm of the East Hudson Youth Soccer League (EHYSL) and the Albertson Express of the Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL). She competed for the Eastern New York Olympic Development Program (ODP) for four years which led to playing on Region 1 ODP and the US National Youth Teams. 86% of the American players in NWSL were members of ODP as teenagers.

Brittany played with the Under-17, Under-20 and Under-21 for five years and has two caps with the U.S. Women’s National Team. She stated, "My favorite moment on a soccer field was when I earned my first cap with the full Women’s National Team. It was a blizzard in Salt Lake City and we were playing Mexico. Coach Sundhage called me over with about 20 minutes left and gave me some instruction with her last words being, ‘Have fun out there!’ "

Brittany attended Washingtonville High School where she was a four-year letter winner. In her senior year, she was honored as All-American and as the New York State Player of the Year. She was also named the Times Herald-Record Player of the Year from 2002 to 2004 plus set the Wizards’ career record for goals with 127 and the record for goals in a single season with 36.

Playing for the UConn Huskies from 2005 to 2009, she was honored as All-American as well as being named the Big East Defender of the Year in both 2007 and 2009.

After college, she was selected sixth overall in the 2010 Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) Draft by Sky Blue FC. She made 42 appearances for the club, scored two goals and was named a WPS All-Star. When that league folded, she played last summer with the New York Fury of Women’s Premier Soccer League Elite.

Paul Riley coached the Fury and stated, "Britt is a monster of a defender with enormous physical qualities, great speed and knows how to tackle. Don’t be fooled by her tough, no nonsense defensive qualities because she has soft feet, strikes a brilliant ball and is a force going forward. She has experienced a phenomenal pro career and having coached her, I truly respect her hunger, professional preparation and off-the-field planning which makes her a top class pro."

On playing with the Western New York Flash, Brittany said, "After playing in the WPS for two years and then having another opportunity to play professional soccer in the US is very exciting. I think it’s great to show all the youth players there is something to aspire to become one day."

With 123,843 youth soccer players––68,587 boys and 55,256 girls––and more than 25,000 volunteers, the non-profit Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) stretches from Montauk Point, Long Island to the Canadian border. Members are affiliated with 12 leagues throughout the association, which covers the entire state of New York east of Route 81. Eastern New York exists to promote and enhance the game of soccer for children and teenagers between the ages of 5 and 19 years old, and to encourage the healthy development of youth players, coaches, referees and administrators. All levels of soccer are offered––from intramural, travel team and premier players as well as Special Children. No child who wants to play soccer is turned away. Eastern New York is a proud member of the United States Soccer Federation and United States Youth Soccer Association. For more information, please log on to http://www.enysoccer.com/, which receives nearly 300,000 hits annually from the growing soccer community.

Soccer As The Beautiful Game

Referees From Eastern New York Selected to Officiate the Top Games in the United States With Five Refs Recently at Nationals

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The leadership of Eastern New York's Referee Program is kneeling in the front row while many of the Elite Referees are standing in the other rows.

By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association

August 14, 2014-2014 is proving to be a very good year for the referee program serving the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) and Eastern New York State Adult Soccer Association.

In 2013, Eastern New York had 3,250 registered refs and that number has increased 31% to 4,250 today. Reasons for this large increase include the innovative leadership of the Eastern New York Referee Program, the support of both the youth and adult associations plus the large number of referee certification classes being held.

But it’s not just the quantity of referees that is getting noticed but the quality of our officials as well. 50 Elite Referees, both men and women from all eight referee districts in Eastern New York, are officiating the most challenging games every weekend in Eastern New York, including the recently-completed finals in State Under-23, State Open Cup, Arch Capital Group Cup, Eastern New York Premier League and the Eastern New York Champions Cup. Some are officiating professional games now while others are being groomed to ref these games in the future. These Elite Referees travel from all over the Empire State to attend clinics that the program hosts in the New York City metropolitan area on the first Tuesday of every month.

These efforts are paying off as referees from Eastern New York were selected to officiate 13 semifinal games and seven championship games of the Regionals played in Rhode Island from June 27 to July 1. Additionally, Eastern New York had more referees at the US Youth Soccer Association Nationals in Maryland from July 22 to 27 than any other state association. Five refs––Brooklyn’s Rosario Candela, Staten Island’s Brian DiPaolo, Justen Lopez of Ballston Spa, East Elmhurst’s Kenneth Rojas and Victor Vasquez of Astoria––represented Eastern New York with pride at Nationals.

“Our referees are having an exceptional year,” commented State Youth Referee Administrator Ray Wolfe.

And they are very busy as well as Eastern New York held its annual Instructor/Assessor meeting on August 3 in Poughkeepsie. More than 50 seasoned veterans attended who teach and evaluate the 4,250 refs officiating games played in Eastern New York, from the most elementary intramural matches played in front of enthusiastic parents to pro games in front of thousands.

Guest speaker John Paine, a US Soccer National Assessor, presented guidelines in referee positioning and performance that are his key interests in assessing games at the highest levels, including Major League Soccer contests.

“None of us are as smart as all of us,” said State Referee Administrator Enrico Romano, “It is through open discussion and careful consideration that the best options will be found for the whole state. I thank all those who attended, virtually 100% of those invited, and look forward to our next gathering.”

Oceanside’s Mike D’Ambrosio Honored By Eastern New York as Our December Personality of the Month

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By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association

December 3, 2018-Things are looking good for longtime soccer volunteer Michael D’Ambrosio as his birthday is coming up on December 9 and he has been selected by the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) as our Personality of the Month for December.

“Michael is an excellent choice for Eastern New York Personality of the Month as he is a hard-working, dedicated volunteer who always puts others before himself,“ commented Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL) President Anthony Maresco.

Mike has lived in the South Shore soccer hamlet of Oceanside since 1981. He first became involved with youth soccer when he registered his daughter Danielle for soccer when she was four years old in 1988. Mike served as the assistant coach of her Oceanside United teams for the next decade and she went on to play for the United States Youth National Teams and Central Connecticut State University.

Back on Long Island, Mike was very busy moving up the ladder as a volunteer on the Oceanside United Soccer Club, serving on the Board of Directors from 1989 to 2003, including as First Vice President of the club from 1993 to 2003. Mike volunteered as Intramural Director, Bob Schrager Labor Day Tournament Director and Co-Director of the Rudy Lamonica Indoor Tournament, the oldest youth soccer indoor tournament in the United States.

Then Mike started directly volunteering for the LIJSL, serving as Trustee from 2004 to 2012 and Second Vice President for the past six years. So is it any wonder that Mike was inducted into the LIJSL Hall of Fame last year?

He also volunteers with the LIJSL’s parent organization, serving on the Eastern New York Board of Directors as Registrar since 2010. Additionally, he volunteers as Chairperson of Eastern New York's Arbitration, Membership and Supervisory committees and is Co-Chairperson of TOPSoccer.

ENYYSA President Richard Christiano commented, “Local soccer people know that when you need something done, you can call and depend on Mike D’Ambrosio. It’s absolutely incredible the number of hours he volunteers for soccer and other organizations!“

Mike also finds the time to serve on the Oceanside School Board since 2013, volunteer on the Pastoral Council of St. Anthony’s Church in Oceanside and earn a living as Special Assistant to the Nassau County Commissioner of Parks, Recreation and Museums, which includes being appointed during Hurricane Sandy to coordinate LIPA and National Grid efforts in Oceanside and surrounding hard-hit areas.

Congratulations to Eastern New York's Personality of the Month, Mike D’Ambrosio!

With over 100,000 youth soccer players––both boys and girls––and more than 25,000 volunteers, the non-profit Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) stretches from Montauk Point, Long Island to the Canadian border. Members are affiliated with nine leagues throughout the association, which covers the entire state of New York east of Route 81. ENYYSA exists to promote and enhance the game of soccer for children and teenagers between the ages of 5 and 19 years old, and to encourage the healthy development of youth players, coaches, referees and administrators. All levels of soccer are offered––from intramural, travel team and premier players as well as Children With Special Needs. No child who wants to play soccer is turned away. ENYYSA is a proud member of the United States Soccer Federation and United States Youth Soccer Association. For more information, please log on to http://www.enysoccer.com/, which receives nearly 300,000 hits annually from the growing soccer community.

Special Children Playing Soccer in An Organized League Began in the Long Island Junior Soccer League in 1978

By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association

January 27, 2013-The TOPSoccer Program of the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) is a wonderful program for kids with special needs. Special Children playing soccer in an organized league actually started in ENYYSA’s largest league, the Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL), when the Huntington Boys Club (HBC) and Massapequa Soccer Club separately started programs in 1978. The HBC program was started by Mike Ludin as he wanted his son Craig, who has Down’s Syndrome, to have the same opportunity to enjoy sports as Craig’s brothers Brian and Evan did. Craig (pictured above) went on to win so many medals in the Special Olympics that he was inducted into the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.

Today, the Capital District Youth Soccer League, East Hudson Youth Soccer League, Staten Island Youth Soccer League and Westchester Youth Soccer League are the other ENYYSA leagues that have TOPSoccer Programs.

The US government is now ordering schools across the country to make "reasonable" changes to sports programs so that Special Needs students can play––or else create separate teams for them. The new guidance from the Education Department issued last Friday was hailed by advocates for children with Special Needs.

"We think it’s huge and historic. In my opinion, it could have the same effect, if properly implemented, as Title IX did for women," said Kirk Bauer, executive director of Disabled Sports USA. Title IX required schools to offer girls and boys the same athletic opportunities and resulted in a huge uptick in female participation in school sports after it took effect 40 years ago.

"This government initiative is a great thing as every year, we move those with Special Needs closer and closer to having the same opportunities that mainstream kids and adults have always had," commented Pete Bussa, Chairperson of ENYYSA’s TOPSoccer Program.

Under the latest rules, schools must tweak traditional programs to give students an opportunity to play as long as they can do it without fundamentally changing the sport or giving anyone an advantage. For instance, a visual aid instead of a starter pistol for the deaf runner would be easy to implement, while adding a fifth base to a baseball field to shorten running distances would be considered too big a change. If alterations to a traditional team aren’t feasible, schools must create a sports program that is open to Special students, the order says. If there aren’t enough students, schools should seek to create district-wide, regional or mixed-gender programs.

ENYYSA was well ahead of the US government on this very important inclusive issue as we have been providing a TOPSoccer Program for the past 35 years. Besides leading the way with this program, the first-ever indoor soccer tournament for Special Children in New York State was hosted by the LIJSL’s Oceanside United in March 2011.

Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association Names James Volpe Administrator of Our Olympic Development Program

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By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association

August 19, 2014-The Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) is very pleased to announce that James Volpe has become the Olympic Development Program (ODP) Administrator. The Baldwin, Long Island resident grew up in neighboring Oceanside and has been involved in soccer his entire life.

“I’m very excited about becoming ODP Administrator and working with all the great volunteers of Eastern New York,” Jim stated.

ODP is considered the highest level of youth soccer in the state and Eastern New York is particularly proud of the success of our program. Crystal Dunn, Cari Roccaro and Oceanside’s Nicholas Gaitan are all former Eastern New York ODP graduates who have represented the United States recently in international competition.

Jim’s soccer career kicked off when he began playing for the Oceanside Dynamo in the Cosmopolitan Junior Soccer League (CJSL) even before the Oceanside United Soccer Club was founded by Joe Goldberg and Ian McDougall in 1962. Jim then played at Oceanside High School and on the men’s team of Oceanside United in those days when soccer was not as popular on the sports landscape as it is today.

He became a coach in Oceanside United’s intramural program in 1977. He coached a half-dozen Oceanside United travel teams over the years, starting with the Oceanside Aztecs, a squad of boys born in 1970. For decades, if there was a soccer game being played in Oceanside, Jim could be spotted at the field, including at the Rudy Lamonica Indoor Tournament, the oldest indoor youth tourney in the United States, and at the Bob Schrager Memorial Long Island Cup. He attained his National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) National Diploma and has been coaching Eastern New York’s ODP for the last 12 years.

Jim’s “real job” is serving as the Manager of Summit Security Services, which provides security guards for companies in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.

Jim volunteered as President of Oceanside United for 1989 to 2000 and his dozen years leading Oceanside United is one of the longest reigns for a club president in Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL) history.

Jim’s children, Chelsea (named after the London soccer club) and Shaun, played for the Manhattan Jaspers a decade ago and still play soccer today. Older daughter Chelsea plays co-ed soccer in Manhattan and is the varsity coach of the Fieldston School in the Riverdale section of the Bronx, near her alma mater. Shaun plays for the Oceanside United women’s team.

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