By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association
 
June 13, 2019-Four different players scored to give the Bethpage Blues a 4-3 win over Hauppauge FC Strikers. This Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) championship game on June 1 at Stringham Park in LaGrange was for the Boys-Under-11 Arch Cup Platinum title and was between two Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL) teams.

Matthew Hopper, Landon Luttrell plus cousins Brody Waxer and Luke Waxer netted the goals for Bethpage.

“I didn’t care about the result and the only thing I asked of the boys is to compete whistle-to-whistle. We were down and we fought back,” explained Bethpage coach Tyler Arnone, who grew up in the LIJSL, then played for the University of Michigan and in Real Salt Lake’s program in MLS.

Bethpage also received the Rocco Amoroso Sportsmanship Award as determined by the game officials. The namesake of the award, who died in 2016, was inducted into the Halls of Fame of the LIJSL and Eastern New York plus was honored as a Life Member by U.S. Soccer. Amoroso started the LIJSL Sportsmanship Program in 1980, it has since been copied around the world and he spoke about the benefits of Fair Play across the United States.
 
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 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/, which receives nearly 300,000 hits annually from the growing soccer community.