East Lyme High School’s boys’ soccer team continues to dominate their season with an undefeated 17-0-1 record, giving up just two goals this season – a statement victory over their rival, Waterford, in the ALS cup. Caleb Trost and Max Montejano scored the two goals that brought the Vikes to victory, but something about these shots carried a little more weight than others.
This game was more than just a high school rivalry, it stood for something more: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). ALS is a disease that affects the nervous system, specifically the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control muscle movement. Playing for this cause makes it much bigger than the game itself.
“This win was important because it spreads awareness around the community about the disease,” Xavier Stefanski said.
The ALS Cup differs from the other games the team plays throughout the season as it raises large amounts of money for the disease. This idea is impactful to the players, knowing they have people to help.
“The team helps raise money for this cause. They don’t necessarily always see who it helps out, but they do realize that this money is used to help people. We have raised over $50,000 in the past 23 years,” ELHS head coach Paul Christensen said.
Coach Christensen also played soccer for ELHS years ago. His relationship with his coach, Bill Bonavita, inspired him to initiate the ALS cup. Mr. Bonavita had five members of his family stricken with the debilitating disease. This caused Christensen to want to make an impact.
“I think for the kids it’s important to reach out to the community and help community members teaches them that sports is more than just winning and losing.” Christensen said.
For boys’ soccer, playing against Waterford means more intensity and higher stakes during this already intense cup.
“Playing against Waterford and keeping the trophy here at East Lyme always feels good,” senior Zachary D’Auito said.
The coaches, players and the fans all feel this pressure too.
“Our mindset is always to win the game, but there’s a lot more competitive spirit because it’s East Lyme and Waterford, so you always have that competition,” Coach Christensen said.
Even though it is important to win the cup, the intense rivalry in mind, Coach Christensen believes it is important to
remember that sometimes sports is bigger than the wins and losses. This idea has been important to Coach Christensen for years, knowing that the point of this game is to focus on reaching out to the community.
Coach Christensen is proud of the team’s hard work and determination this year and has high hopes for them moving onto ECCS and states this season.
“They’re a tremendous team and they’re great kids and they have big goals for sure,” Mr. Christensen said.
