Despite a sub-.500 record in 2013, Elmwood Park’s boys soccer team came into the 2014 season carrying plenty of hope.
The Tigers were young the previous year and head coach Martin Blake expected his team to make a vast improvement.
He didn’t suspect that his Tigers would come up with the best boys soccer season in school history.
Elmwood Park won its first regional championship since 2008 and made it to the sectional championship for the first time before losing to Foreman 1-0 in double overtime.
“Going in, our goal was to win conference, which we took second in, win a regional because were hosting and get to a sectional championship,” Blake said. “When you get to that point it’s just 16 teams left in your class. We did what we were supposed to do.”
While Blake was expecting a strong season, some of the players weren’t so sure. The Tigers had just four seniors on the team and the poor season in 2013 weighed heavily on them.
“I knew that we were going to be a better team but I wasn’t expecting anything big,” senior captain Aleks Grabowski said. “We were always having problems with offense during the season and when we got the No. 1 seed [in the sectional] Matt Ziuzia and I were making fun of it. We knew we got way better but we didn’t feel like we were a No. 1 seed.”
“We knew we were not going to have another losing season,” Ziuzia, also a senior captain, said. “But the sectional finals really surprised us. I don’t think anyone expected to get that far.”
The commitment of the players made a big difference. In the spring Blake opened the soccer field every morning for anyone to come and play games. And every morning the field would be packed.
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“That was a great sign, seeing so many guys come out,” Ziuzia said. “Even guys who were playing other sports were finding a way to get out there. I was really happy to see guys showing commitment and those pick-up matches helped a lot.”
The strong work ethic continued into the summer camps conducted by the Tigers.
“Our summer was one of the best summers we put together,” Blake said. “We had 24 kids come in and work hard all summer and I don’t see that changing next year.”
When the season started, the Tigers showed flashes that this team could be special. But at other times they struggled, including a 2-0 loss to arch-rival Ridgewood. Elmwood Park went into the postseason with a 9-7-1 record.
Hosting a Class 2A regional, the Tigers pleased their fans with a 5-1 win over Aspira/Early College in the semifinals before pulling out a 1-0 victory over Muchin to take the title.
Elmwood Park had its revenge in the Ridgewood Sectional semifinals by beating the host Rebels 2-0.
“That was the best game of my four year career,” Grabowski said. “I was really surprised with how we played that game. If we played every game like we did that Ridgewood game we would have made it a lot farther.”
Elmwood Park’s remarkable season came to an end in the sectional finals with a 1-0 loss to Foreman. The game began in a snowstorm on Oct. 31 and went 14 minutes until it was postponed until the next day.
“We had quite a few opportunities before halftime,” Blake said. “There were 26 minutes when we returned [on Saturday] and we dominated. I thought that was our moment. To be honest, it was pretty devastating loss. We weren’t one of those teams that said look how far we made it.”
There’s no reason to think that 2015 won’t be just as successful. While the team loses four senior starters, including Grabowski, Ziuzia, Olutomiwa Akinrotimi and Mario Muhaj, plenty are coming back.
“Most of the team is still going to be there and I think they’ll be a big threat even without us four,” Ziuzia said. “If they have confidence and the hard work is there I’m sure they’ll make it to the sectional finals or further.”