Edmeston Boys Claim Second Stamford Mayors Cup Title

STAMFORD – The Stamford Mayors Cup Soccer Tournament  trophy will return to Tri-Valley League Edmeston as they successfully defended their title with a 1-0 win over South Kortright/Andes in the finale of the annual tournament on Saturday.

Saturday was a great day for soccer at Russ Archibald Memorial Field in Stamford as 12 teams took the field in final rounds of the  tournament.

The Gilboa/Roxbury boys shutout host Jefferson/Stamford 6-0 to win third place in the tournament, while Laurens/Milford defeated Charlotte Valley 5-0 to finish fifth in the tournament.

Roni Grieco led the way for G/R as he struck for a hat trick , while teammate Garrison-Ross scored one goal and assisted on another. Dominic Greico and Cody Ciaravino each scored one goal in the win.

Laurens/Milford was led by Cole Williams who connected on a pair of goals and a pair of assists, while Colin Capraro, Aidan Mertz and Rhys Calleja all added single goals to the victory.

In the boys championship, Edmeston went out to a 1-0 first half lead as Lucas Wust connected for the lone goal of the game to give the Panthers the win off assist  from teammate Brock Redner. While SK/A held them over the second half, the Rams were unable to finish in the goal.

Coach Dan Cheatham acknowledged that SK/A is a tough team and he told his team as they came off the field. "You played a hell of a game. We were able to defend our title and the the next step is to be better than we were today," he said before lining them up for their trophy photo.

He was very pleased with his team, saying it was their best game so far this season. "SK/A is a very good team and they stayed right there. I'm glad our guys came to play today." He particularly pointed to his men in the midfield, Gavin Zinger, Max Bolton and Collin Lund. "They played their hearts out today. "

The game ended with SK/A goalie Brayden Sparkes going off the field in an ambulance with an arm injury with less than three minutes to go and Paxton Popp came off the field a few minutes earlier with a nose injury. The two were sharing a hospital room and waiting to learn their fateon Monday according to Popp’s father.

“I am really proud of the way our kids played,” said SK/A Coach Gary LiCalzi. “We played against one of the strongest teams in the section. We knew it would be a tough game. We had some good opportunities to score, but the ball just didn’t go in. It was a sectional quality game.”

As for his team injuries, he said they will definitely feel the loss of Sparkes from the lineup. “He is a huge part of this team’s success over the past two years. Paxton has been coming on strong and developing into a solid player,” said LiCalzi. “We will come up with a plan.”

Named to the All-Star team were the following players: Cole Williams - Laurens/Milford; Cole Whitbeck - Charlotte Valley; Jake Kingsbury  - Unatego/Franklin; Tristen Thomson-Stamford/Jefferson; Roni Grieco  and David Cammer - Gilboa/Roxbury; JB Trimbell, Parker Popp and Brayden Sparkes - South Kortright/Andes; Braymon Clark, Max Bolton, Landon Wust, Brock Redner and Nolan Fickbohm- Edmeston.

Members  of the Edmeston Panthers pose for a photo as repeat champions of the annual Stamford Mayors Cup Soccer Tournament in Stamford on Saturday. They defeated South Kortright/Andes 1-0.