Wednesday, June 13th will see the Niagara College men's and women's soccer programs play host to the fifth annual Niagara Region High School Soccer showcase at Youngs SportsPlex in Welland. The event will see more than 80 of the area's best high school soccer players representing 22 Niagara Region schools come together for a pair of best-on-best games designed to showcase the high talent level that exists in the local high school soccer ranks.
"This showcase has really grown into a top-quality event and is a nice celebration of the high school soccer scene" said Niagara Knights men's soccer head coach Frank DeChellis. "Letting skilled athletes play in a pressure-free environment allows them to display their passion for football. Both games are always entertaining and it doesn't take long for new teammates to start combining on the pitch."
The event will feature a girls' game at 6:00pm and boys' game following at 8:00pm. The two games will be played on the indoor field at Youngs SportsPlex in Welland, and will feature free admission for all community members.
The annual June showcase games were conceived back in 2014 by long-time Knights assistant coach Rino Berardi.
"This event was originally created as an opportunity to provide local soccer fans a chance to see all the best soccer players in the Niagara region play with or against each other" said Berardi "I am happy that it has come as far as it has. Coaches have told us that players are asking to be included."
The format for the Niagara Region High School Soccer showcase sees each local area high school soccer program invited to send their participants of their choosing to the event. Players are split evenly into two rosters, with MVP award winners being selected from each team at the end of the match.
"I have been very impressed with the overall talent and caliber of our local high school teams" added Niagara Knights women's soccer head coach Rob Lalama. "This showcase game allows all these outstanding players an opportunity to put their individual skills on display."
In a testament to the caliber of high school soccer in the region, more than 25 former showcase participants have gone on to wear the Knights jersey at the varsity level in the Ontario Colleges Atheltic Assiociation.
"We really do have a lot of talent in Niagara" continued DeChellis. "A large chunk of our roster is filled by Niagara area players who have played prominent roles in our recent success. "Word has spread that we are contenders and that has fueled a lot of interest in Niagara College and our soccer program."
Standout former participants of the event include 2017 OCAA West Rookie of the Year Michelle Maecker (Fonthill, E.L. Crossley), 2017 Knights women's soccer MVP Kara Latham (Welland, Centennial), and 2016 Knights men's soccer rookie of the year Jake Therrien (Welland, Notre Dame)
"Rino's success at unearthing local talent is a direct result of the high school coaches who are in constant contact with us" said DeChellis. "It's another bridge between Niagara College and local high schools. We aim to motivate these student-athletes to consider post-secondary education as well as post-secondary soccer."
Boys' Team Blue
1 Hunter Oakley - Blessed Trinity CHS
2 Matt Scocchia - Grimsby SS
3 Tamas Kalenda - EL Crossley SS
4 Oreyn Hall - St. Michael CHS
5 Patrick Alvarez - Blessed Trinity CHS
6 Michael Fernandez - Denis Morris CHS
7 Ivan Mamic - St. Francis CHS
8 Xavier Makris - Grimsby SS
9 Nick Andreola - AN Meyer SS
10 Connor Carroll - Holy Cross CHS
11 Oti Frigole - Governor Simcoe SS
12 Nick Pringle - Governor Simcoe SS
13 Jonah Boria - Blessed Trinity CHS
14 Nolan Bosetti - Notre Dame
15 Noah Dabramo - St. Paul CHS
16 Matt Wnukowski - Notre Dame
17 Jordan VanHerwynen - Smithville Christian HS
18 Mario Borojevic - Westlane SS
19 Alonso Gaci - St. Francis CHS
20 Duncan Glancy - EL Crossley SS
21 Dean Miller - Port High HS
22 Matt Fang - Lakeshore CHS
Boy's TEAM WHITE
1 Anthony Marroquin - Denis Morris CHS
2 Taylor Miscolzi - Notre Dame
3 Josh Allegro - AN Meyer SS
4 Patrick Loanidis - Greater Fort Erie
5 Victor Kariuki - St. Paul CHS
6 Tristan Samuel - Holy Cross CHS
7 Luka Peso - Holy Cross CHS
8 Altin Ibrahimi - Holy Cross CHS
9 Evan Charnock - Denis Morris CHS
10 Nick DiPasquale - St. Francis CHS
11 Marco Primerano - AN Meyer SS
12 Sebastian Argudo - Holy Cross CHS
13 Jarret Heidebrecht - Centennial SS
14 Taylor Desmarais - Port High HS
15 Ian Hauber - Jean Vanier
16 Bradley Connor - Jean Vanier
17 Hayden Ladecour - Denis Morris CHS
18 Jake Casciano - St. Paul CHS
19 Kylar Lampman - Centennial SS
20 Riley Hart - St. Michael CHS
21 Caleb Crawford - Sir Winston Churchill
22 Cole Giarratano - Denis Morris CHS
GIRLS Team Blue
1 Julia Thies - Smithville Christian HS
2 Isabelle Newkirk - Governor Simcoe SS
3 Carley Ibey - St.Michael CHS
4 Mia DiPasquale - Blessed Trinity CHS
5 Julia Barker - Sir Winston Churchill
6 Kaitlyn Pressley - Thorold High
7 Brianna Bishop - AN Meyer SS
8 Laryn Palin - Blessed Trinity CHS
9 Hailey Gowel - Lakeshore CHS
10 Alyssa Arcand - Jean Vanier
11 Annie Ibey - St. Michael CHS
12 Madison Rotella - St. Michael CHS
13 Isabella DeNardi - Lakeshore
14 Stephanie Isherwood - Denis Morris CHS
15 Danielle Brinker - Jean Vanier
16 Kate Knafelc - EL Crossley SS
17 Madi Crowe-O'Brien - Beamsville HS
18 Sarah Scerbo - St.Paul CHS
19 Sierra Dykstra - Governor Simcoe SS
GIRLS Team White
1 Jenna Hamann - Notre Dame
2 Breanna Habinski - Greater Fort Erie
3 Linsay Horton - Notre Dame
4 Jesalyn Rothney - Sir Winston Churchill
5 Kate Raso - Notre Dame CHS
6 Lauren Berlingeri - AN Meyer SS
7 Terin Hultink - Smithville Christian HS
8 Jordan Gabriele - Sir Winston Churchill
9 Thalia D'Gyves - Notre Dame
12 Olivia Iannotta - Blessed Trinity CHS
13 Sarah O'Rourke - Holy Cross CHS
14 Sophia Al-Kayad - St. Francis CHS
15 Catherine Wirkkunen - Centennial SS
16 Samantha Duncan - Notre Dame
17 Shelby Parker - Holy Cross CHS
18 Sommer Newton - EL Crossley SS
19 Madison Small - Governor Simcoe SS
20 Sam Seburn - Thorold High
21 Kyra Eaton - Lakeshore CHS
22 Jocelyn Allan - AN Meyer SS