East Region

NYCFC Win the Girls-Under-13 Regional Championship

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

July 19, 2025-NYCFC won the Girls-Under-13 Regional Championship, winning four games with no losses and tying one, two weeks ago in Loudon County, Virginia.

“The team brought a real hunger, desire and togetherness to fight for every ball at Regionals,” NYCFC coach Stuart Smith explained. “Our defense and goalkeepers played a near perfect tournament on both sides of the ball and our attackers created and scored freely in every game. The energy and tenacity the players brought to and maintained throughout each game despite the heat was incredible to see.”

Back row, left to right: Coach Stuart Smith, Julie Mothner, Adeline Morris, Brooks Hallihan Noiman, Paola Gonzalez, Iliana Munoz, Clara Power, Samantha Velaquez, Saide Ortega-Galvan
Front row, left to right: Lucianna Lopez, Francesca Galluzzo, Sabrina Matsuda, Leyla Naspud, Gaby Vasquez, Aria Addeo, Mable Gilmer, Karen Barrera, Madeline Shyu

The Regional final on July 3 was between two teams from the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) as NYCFC took on Dix Hills Angel City.

“Losing to Dix Hills in the State Cup final and the semifinal of our own Memorial Day Weekend tournament gave our team the best possible motivation going into Regionals,” Coach Smith stated. “We were determined to make those results right and that was evident in the way we started the game, going up by three goals in the first 25 minutes. Having played Dix Hills three times recently, we knew they are a great team but we also knew a lot about them which enabled us to head into the Regional final with a strong game plan to overcome their strengths.”

After defeating Dix Hills, 4-2, in the Regional final, NYCFC will represent Eastern New York in playing for the national championship in Orlando from July 22 to 27.

“After giving our team some time to recover as Regionals was a tough week both physically and mentally, we are now back to training and it’s all about refocusing the group, working on some tactical situations that we feel we can improve and getting the group used to playing in extreme temperatures again. We expect stiff competition in Orlando but the team is excited and ready for the challenge,” Coach Smith concluded.

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 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 US Youth Soccer. For more information, please log on to http://www.enysoccer.com/

Long Island Slammers Win Their Second Regional Title in Three Years

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

July 16, 2025-Congratulations to the Boys-Under-15 Long Island Slammers who won their second Regional title in the past three years. They will represent the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) in playing for the national championship in Orlando from July 22 to 27.

At the Regionals in Loudon County, Virginia, the Slammers outscored their opponents, 18-0, in five games and did not concede a goal. The championship game on July 3 was an emphatic 4-0 win over the West Virginia Futbol Club that Slammers coach Frank Pampin, a 2022 Regional Coach of the Year, described as “a standout performance from our entire midfield and attackers.”

“Defending as a team is a core part of our identity, and at Regionals, that really showed. Jeremy, our goalkeeper, was great, and our back line of Jeronimo, Andrew, Wilson and Miguel, played with incredible discipline and intensity. They worked together seamlessly and delivered a top-level performance throughout the tournament,” Coach Pampin explained.

Their coach stated that “Consistency, humility, and hunger makes our team really good. These boys show up every day with the right attitude. We emphasize discipline in and out of possession, and the players have fully bought into the system. But more importantly, they care about each other. That chemistry combined with a commitment to hard work is what’s carried us through tough games. We’re not just a talented group, we’re a family.”

The boys are back training to prepare for Nationals and refining details plus tactical awareness as the level of competition will be even higher.

“Our players are prepared to give everything they have as they represent Eastern New York and the Long Island Slammers at Nationals,” Coach Pampin concluded.

Back row, left to right: Coach Bryan Palma, Joshua, Jake, Alex, Isaiah, Jeremy, Coach Frank Pampin, Wilson and Andrew
Front row, left to right: Miguel, Dylan, Jacob, Jhon, Jeysson, Marcus, Jeronimo and Erick

New York Hota Capture the Boys-Under-17 Regional Championship

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

July 17, 2025-New York Hota won the Boys-Under-17 Regional Championship, winning four games with no losses and tying one. They won the Regional title with an emphatic 6-0 win over Torpedoes Red from New Jersey on July 3 in Loudon County, Virginia.

Back row, left to right: Coach Dan Fisher, Jack Costa, Will Gleason, Lorenzo Riccuiti, Austin Sheehan, Jack Gunn, Yanni Kapetanis, Dylan Fisher, Coach Danny Diliberti
Front row, left to right: James Martino, Jack Darlington, Otto Alvarez, Frankie Torres, Gavin Joyce, Will Forgerty, Drew Lennon, Sean Mahoney, Robbie Malave, Noah Romero, Kosta Plioutas

“Our team persevered. One of the biggest challenges we faced was the extreme heat. In group play we had 90+ degrees on Saturday, Sunday and Monday and playing tough competition three days in a row is really tough,” New York Hota coach Danny Diliberti explained. “I decided to take the team to Elite Wellness in Ashburn, Virginia. The owner, McKenna Smet, is a former college soccer player at Towson University. She was fantastic in helping the team. We used the center for recovery doing a cryo freeze and compression boots for the players. This method helped the players recover and prevented injuries.”

New York Hota will represent the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) in playing for the national championship in Orlando from July 22 to 27.

“We will go over tactics and situational play before traveling to Florida. We will try to keep our fitness up and maintain focus,” Coach Diliberti stated.

Mike Finnegan Honored as Life Member by the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association

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

August 8, 2024-At the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Associaton (ENYYSA) Annual General Meeting on August 3 at the Sonesta Hotel in White Plains, Eastern New York’s youth leagues unanimously gave Life Member status to longtime volunteer Mike Finnegan. The Life Member award in local youth soccer is equivalent to the Lifetime Achievement Award designation used by other groups.

“A reason that the vote was unanimous is Mike’s steady personality is so deserving for Life Member status and he has volunteered in youth soccer for nearly 50 years plus continues volunteering today,” stated ENYYSA President Richard Christiano.

Mike began his soccer journey like many other American adults, after his daughter Noreen registered for youth soccer. He started coaching Noreen in intramurals in 1977 in the Rockville Centre Soccer Club, coaching her Rockville Centre Cardinals travel team up to the Under-23 division, for the next 15 years. Mike’s other daughters, Sharon and Veronica, also played soccer but he did not coach them.

Mike also coached St. Agnes High School (just before it became Kellenberg High School) in 1986 for one year and arguably his greatest accomplishment in his brief time there was getting the Private School Girls players included in the Exceptional Senior Games that were organized by the Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL).

Mike’s volunteering increased substantially when he was elected to the Board of Directors of the Rockville Centre Soccer Club in the 1980’s, helping lead a period of great growth in the club, and he served as Intramural Chairperson, Travel Chairperson, Secretary, Vice President and President.

The longtime Rockville Centre resident was elected ENYYSA Treasurer in 1986 and performed this important role for over two decades. He became a member of the East Region Olympic Development Program (ODP) in 1986 and served as camp director and team administrator for the next 30 years until 2016.

Awards include being inducted into the Eastern New York Soccer Hall of Fame in 2002 and honored as Volunteer of the Year by the East Region in 2005.

Now in his eighties, Mike has not been slowing down as he has volunteered as the ENYYSA Scholarship Chairperson since after the turn of the millennium and as Appeals Chairperson for more than a decade.

Boys-Under-14 East Coast FC Regional Qualify For Nationals

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

July 15, 2024-East Coast FC Regional won both the Boys-Under-14 State Cup and Regional titles as they have become one of the best youth soccer teams in New York State.

“We would like to dedicate the State Cup and the Eastern Regional Championship to our beloved club mentor, Joe Misso, who was born in 1945 and passed away earlier this year,” East Coast FC coach John Kokkoris stated. “Joe always said, ‘What you put into it is what you get out of it,’ and that is what our club is built on.”

In the State Cup, they won all six games, outscoring their opponents 23 to 1. Hector Santiago scored the only goal of the final as they topped Just Play Soccer Premier, 1-0, at Stringham Park in LaGrange on June 1.

“The majority of our team has been together from the beginning, some even as young as five and six years old. They have grown up together and learned from past experiences, always showing persistency in reaching their objectives,” Coach Kokkoris said. “Their mentality has been top level from such a young age and it’s been special watching them mature and develop over the years.”

The Long Island side continued to impress at Regionals, winning four games and losing one, outscoring their opponents 10 to 5.

“In order to prepare for Regionals, we actually had a friendly with the Stony Brook LGN Thunder back in New York,” Coach Kokkoris explained. “After that friendly game, we told the boys that with the quality the two groups have, we wouldn’t be surprised if we met in the finals and that’s exactly what happened.”

The only goal of the Regional final was scored by Saul Peraza with three minutes left as East Coast got by Stony Brook LGN, 1-0, between the two teams from the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) on July 2 in West Virginia.

Kokkoris continued, “Before the Regional Final, Stony Brook LGN coach Tim Graham and I met up and watched the USA play against Uruguay in the Copa America and traded some playful banter. Congratulations to Stony Brook LGN and their fantastic program.”

Back row, left to right-Coach John Kokkoris, Mitchell Levi, Alex Jung, Ryan Silva, Kaden Gallagher, Hudson Wu, Jesus Sorto, Team Manager Fina Lugris
Middle row, left to right-Saul Peraza, Andrew McCormack, Hunter Chilelli, Mayer Kaufman
Front row, left to right-Alejandro Lugris, Lennix Batres, Roi Lago, Hector Santiago, David Figueroa, Nico Leguizamon, Caedan McCord, Michael Keesee

East Coast FC Regional will represent Eastern New York as they play for the national championship from July 23 to 28 at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Reunion, Florida.

“We are going to treat Nationals like we do any other event. Nothing changes, with 100% concentration and 100% hard work in every training session,” Kokkoris concluded, “These boys are on a mission!”