2011 Casa Boston Survey

Segunda Action - The 10:00am Segunda Championship pitted NE Nor'easters FC vs. MIT. These teams met twice in the regular season with the Nor'easters taking both 4-0. This one started exactly the same way with the Nor'easter attack taking it to the MIT defense. Goals by Angel Arvelo, Christian Garces and Can Yegen put them up 3-0 and the Nor'easter midfield was pushing hard up the field. The start of the second half wasn't any different, as Christian Garces got on the board for a second time, putting the Nor'easters up 4-0. Cruising comfortably, MIT started to pull it together and pound the ball down the center of the field. They got on the board three times on goals by Craig McRonald, Brendan Crowly and Marcos Figueiredo against a Nor'Easter defense that was sagging. The fourth goal finally came, and this one was tied up 4-4 going into OT.

The two 15 minute OT periods started with MIT again driving the ball down the middle of the field and it looked like the momentum was going towards MIT bigtime. However, late in the 1st OT Nor'Easters Christian Garces got one, and it proved to be the game winner 5-4. Congratulations to the NE Nor'Easters FC for their victoy!

Primera Action - Oneida FC and Boston United hit the pitch at 1pm for the start of the Fall 2011 Casa Boston League Championship. Back and forth for the first minutes Boston United took a break away down the right side of the pitch and Ryan Newton picked it up. After a foul outside the box, Oneida FC defender Jay Smith was shown a Red Card at the 26' for violent play. Even with a man down, they proceeded to push the attack and let loose some nice shots. In fact, both goalkeepers saw a fair amount of activity in the first half, but stopped everything that came their way and this one went 0-0 after the first 45'.

The start of the 2nd 45' saw the 10-man Oneida FC squad maintaining control of the ball and pushing up against the Boston United defense. However, a miscue by the BU backline gave Jaime Mira and easy goal, putting Oneida FC up 1-0. Nelson Neves made it 2-0 with hit from the top of the box at minute 76' and that was enough to pad the victory. Congratulations to Oneida FC on the League Championship and well done Boston United - it was still a very well played game all around.

Results have been updated. Congratulations to our Players of the Match for this week:

• Matt Miller (NE Nor'Easters FC)
• George Watts-Sturrock (Oneida FC)

So that's it for this Fall 2011 Season! Thank you to everybody for a very well done year - couldn't have done it without the managers, players, referees, facilities and even the fans. On a great note of interest, it is with great excitement that we welcome Caleb Raynor of Oneida FC to the League's Board of Directors as the new Vice President! I think we have some great momentum heading into the off-season... have a fantastic Holidays and see you all again in April!

Primera Action - #2 Boston United v. #3 BIFC. BIFC really worked the ball well up and down the field for the first half and definitely had more possession time than Boston United. It stayed tied at the end of the first half, and well into the second. At the 85',. Matt Monarch took a set piece high up towards the corner and Dimitrios Kamberidis cleaned up the rebound to get BU on top. Both teams loaded the box for the final BIFC push, but this one ended 1-0 BU. The last game of the day showed #1 Oneida FC v. #4 New England International. NEI's attack went after it quick, with three or four breakaways in the fist 20', but couldn't convert. At that point the momentum switched to Oneida FC, as they unleashed 4 goals by 4 different players to finish out the 1st half. The 2nd half was a runaway with Oneida FC opening up a sizable lead, and NEI did get some goals in this half but it was too little too late. Oneida FC onto the Championship.

Segunda Action - We started off the day with a 10:50 Semi-Final match showing #2 NE Nor'Easters FC taking on #3 Middlesex United. The Nor'Easters wasted no time opening this one up, hitting the first three goals and opening up a 3-0 lead going into the half. However, it was Middlesex United who would do all the scoring the rest of the way, chipping at the Nor'Easter lead for the entire second half. The Red brought it to 3-2 and then pounded the net for the last 15'. The Nor'Easters withheld the grinding to preserve the 3-2 victory. #1 MCP United vs. #4 MIT was the other semi-final. MIT got on the board first, however Saheed Alabi tied it up about halfway in the 2nd with a breakaway and low shot to the left corner. MIT jumped back up on a tremendous shot by Dioleno Alves from the outside of the center cirle to the top left corner. MIT topped it off for a 3-1 final, to advance to the Championship versus the Nor'Easters.

The Standings have been updated. Congratulations to our Players of the Match for this week:

• Tim Nuccio (Middlesex United)
• Jose Alves (MIT)
• Dimitrios Kamberidis (Boston United)
• Matt Hardiman (Oneida FC)

We head into the final week of the season with two Championship games at hand this Saturday at Winsor!

Primera Action - #2 Boston United v. #7 Penguin FC. Holy Cow this was a good one. Tied going into the 80', Justin Putland put a header into net off a decent sequence by the Penguin FC attack. Not more than 4 minutes later, Ryan Newton broke loose and finished a low rocket into net to tie it up. Going into PKs, Penguin hit their first 4 to put victory into reach. But it was BU sealing the deal in the end, hitting the next two to win it 5-4. #4 Minutemen FC and #5 New England International at the 2:30 showed a rematch of the Fall 2010 Championship. Ole Erikson hit quickly to put NEI up 1-0. Diego Podesta hit two from distance to seal the deal for NEI 3-0. The final game of the day showed #3 BIFC v. #6 AC Boston. Tied 1-1 at the half, this one went crazy in the second half. AC Boston's Rama Myers went net to put it AC Boston up 2-1, then BIFC went on a scoring spree to net the next 3 goals. BIFC 4-2 over AC Boston. POM to former HarborView Hustler Tedi Kujofsa with a solid performance up front for BIFC.

Segunda Action - The 9:00am quarterfinal match between #3 Middlesex United v. #6 The Arsenal Maulers showed the Red getting out to a fast start 2-0, with a sick hit from deep by Tim Nuccio. Middlesex dropped another in the second half to take it 3-0. Two goals and POM from Nick Nuccio to power Middlesex United. In 12:40 action, #4 MIT faced #5 Midnight Riders. THe first 10' saw both teams trade goals, with MIT going up 2-1 after the first 20'. It was all MIT after that, taking it 5-1 at the end of regular time. Solid game by POM Laura DiDomenico.

The Standings have been updated. Congratulations to our Players of the Match for this week:

• Nick Nuccio (Middlesex United)
• Justin Putland (Penguin FC)
• Laura DiDomenico (MIT)
• Ole Erikson (New England International)
• Tedi Kujofsa (BIFC)

Going into the semifinals of the playoffs, we have arranged to finish out the season at Winsor School. The playoff schedule is posted below. Some solid matchup on the way with the top 4 seeds from each division squaring off. Looking for a team of players to take on Harvard in the 9:00am, so let me know if you are interested in getting in on the Friendly Action!

The playoff schedule is posted below:

We have some great opening round matchups lined up, as well as a Friendly featuring both the #1 teams from both leagues. Congrats to MCP United as they have been promoted to the Primera for the Spring 2012 season courtesy of their dominance of the Segunda Division this Fall, going 6-0-1. Nothing like a little friendly against Oneida FC to benchmark yourself going into the winter. Congrats to Oneida FC as well, who pulled out the #1 seed in Primera with a victory this past weekend against NEI. For the guys playing in the Segunda tournament, we are trying to keep the incentive there. Winners of the tourney will be considered for promotion to Primera next Spring as well, pending a full slate of teams in each division.

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A couple of weekends ago there was a scrimmage against a potential Harvard team. It was a pretty good game - well done Harvard. I hope you guys plan on getting involved with Casa Boston in the Spring. Equally important was the establishment of the ORIGINAL Casa Boston All Star Team. This awesome squad is shown below. Cheers! to this monumental achievement in Casa Boston History:

Primera Action - BIFC and Penguin FC hit the turf for the 10am, in windy conditions that definitely factored into the play. Walls of wind blew the soccer ball all over the place, and BIFC struck three times in the first half going downwind. That was enough to take this game, and put another in net in the second for a 4-0 victory, getting the 3 points for the table. Oneida FC and Minutemen FC tangled in the 12pm for a chippy one. Last time these guys played, it was Oneida on top 6-0. Oneida again got the better of this matchup with a 4-2 victory. Two goals for Jaime Mira and POM for Costas Lyssiotis - his 4th of his Casa Boston career. The 2pm was an important game for both Boston United and New England International, who are both battling for the top of the Primera table. NEI struck first, but it was BU who came back with two goals to answer. Big game for BU goalkeeper Nick Barbatl, who stopped some rips from the NEI attack. BU over NEI 2-1.

Segunda Action - Saturday's Segunda action opened up with the Midnight Riders v. The Arsenal Maulers. The Maulers looked to get on the board this week, but took on a Midnight Riders team previously took victory 6-1 at Winsor a few weeks back. This one was closer, but it was still the Riders getting the better of the matchup 2-0. Big game though for Berahman Gholamreza though, working the midfield and pushing the Maulers attack forward. In the 12pm we had the NE Nor'Easters and MIT tangle. The Nor'Easters attack was led by Angel with three goals and the POM. Nick Davala also on the board with his first goal of his Casa Boston Career! Nor'Easters over MIT 4-0, but the MIT roster is enviably rounding out well, as it appears they have a very solid core of guys that show up every week and get their full 90' of run. They'll be strong in the playoffs. The last game of the day was a great MCP United v. Middlesex United game. Compared to the Spring 2011 season, both these teams have showed impressive improvement and both these teams are going to be tough in the playoffs. MCP looks like a freight train though, as they won for the 4th straight game beating Middlesex United 3-0. Next week's 2pm matchup against MIT looks to be the game of the week!

The Standings have been updated. Congratulations to our Players of the Match for this week:

• Berahman Gholamreza (The Arsenal Maulers)
• Erin Schweitzer (BIFC)
• Angel (NE Nor'Easters)
• Costas Lyssiotis (Oneida FC)
• Andrew Vargas (MCP United)
• Nick Barbatl (Boston United)

We are going to push the 1st round of playoffs out to the open Oct. 29/30 week, and fit in the 9/24 rainout games next week at LCA on Saturday, with the Minutemen FC v. Boston United makeup at Winsor School at 10:00am on SUNDAY. Here's what it looks like for next week, the final regular season week before we head into the playoffs:

Primera Action - AC Boston and Minutemen FC hit the LCA Top pitch for the 10am. Both teams needed a victory in order to stave off relegation talk, and both teams played a solid match. Justin Govonlu with a goal, assist and POM award leads Minutemen FC to victory in a close 3-2 match. Boston United and BIFC entered this game looking to get their three points and sit atop the table after this match. However, this one went into the books as a 0-0 tie, netting each team with a point. The Oneida FC v. Penguin FC match ended in a 3-0 forfeit victory for Oneida.

Segunda Action - In the 10am match, Middlesex United squared off against a NE Nor'Easter team looking to stay atop the Segunda division. 0-0 going into the 87', the Nor'Easters got one to fall, taking the lead. However, it was Middlesex United on a rush on net at the 89' to tie it up 1-1, where this one ended. MCP United took on Midnight Riders in the 12pm, and cruised easily to a 4-1 win, getting them the 3 points needed to sit on top of the Segunda table. The 2pm showed The Arsenal Maulers v. MIT. Marcos Figueiredo with a two goal game, leading MIT to the victory

The Standings have been updated. Congratulations to our Players of the Match for this week:

• Nick Nuccio (Middlesex United)
• Justin Govonlu (Minutemen FC)
• Jose Fernando (Midnight Riders)
• Greg Zoeller (Boston United)
• Marcos Figueirido (MIT)

Please note that next week's games are at the Citizen's Bank Fields in Lancaster. Please give yourself enough time to get there. We are also finalizing the make-up game plan, so please stay tuned!

Primera Action - Minutemen FC v. Penguin FC at the 10:50. Great match. Minutemen was looking to get their first points of the season on a pitch that brought them the Championship last Spring. Penguin FC stood in their way however, and brought it. Ray Cooper's stellar play in the back kept Penguin close, but it was Minutemen that defended their turf, winning 3-1. AC Boston and Boston United hit it for the 12:40. AC Boston looked to be missing some key players, and BU took advantage squeezing out a 2-1 victory. The 4:20 game was a sick game showing New England International v. BIFC. Best game of the season by far. The level of play in this one was very high, with all goals showing that Casa Boston has some serious talent. Can't say enough about BIFC in this one - well done guys. NEI just popped off a few more crazy hits, and took it 4-2. Sunday's Clarke matchup saw AC Boston go back to back, this time against Oneida FC. Unfortunately, it was a tough weekend for AC Boston. Oneida FC came up stronger in the wet conditions, taking it 2-0. Jay Smith with Player of the Match.

Segunda Action - MCP United v. Middlesex United in the 9:00am. Middlesex looked to continue it's resurgence, and MCP looked to maintain it's standing atop the table. Big game for the Karpusyuk brothers, each getting a goal taking home the 3-1 victory... Nick Nuccio with the POM, his 3rd this Fall Season and 9th Career Overall... Casa Boston Hall of Fame worthy? The 10am at Clarke was a battle between the NE Nor'Easters and MIT. Sean Matthys went goal crazy, hitting for all 4 of the Nor'Easters nets, taking the POM and propelling the Nor'Easters to a 4-0 victory. The 2:30pm saw a Midnight Riders team get back into 2009-2010 form, showing that they can hit the net if they get on a roll. Riders over Maulers 6-1.

The Standings have been updated. Congratulations to our Players of the Match for this week:

• Nick Nuccio (Middlesex United)
• Sean Matthys (NE Nor'Easters)
• Ray Cooper (Penguin FC)
• Patrick Moynahan (Boston United)
• Berahman Gholamreza (The Arsenal Maulers)
• Diego Podesta (New England International)
• Jay Smith (Oneida FC)

So, we are working on scheduling the make-up games. The weekend looks pretty good right now, so hopefully we Casa can get back on a roll and get the ball rolling from here on out. Thanks to the Captains for getting the fees in. And thanks again to Karen and Felix at Winsor for hosting us... looking forward to the Spring!

Photos by Nick Davala and Sofi Boettner

Primera Action - AC Boston v. NEI showed the return of some fellow Casa Alumni back from remote parts of the earth! Cheers! NEI was coming off a drubbing the previous week, and took it out on AC Boston, ripping it 6-1. Good to see NEI regaining form. BIFC took on Minutemen FC in the noon kick, and they took it to the defending champions by a score of 4-1. Minutemen FC looks to get back in the groove after loosing some key players over the summer. BIFC is looking stronger each week. The 2pm put Boston United up against Oneida FC. Boston United looks strong this Fall, and defeated Oneida FC by the score of 2-0. This is going to be a great rematch later on this season! BIFC turned around a Sunday game this week, taking on Penguin FC. Accounts of this one were that it was competitive, with BIFC taking it 3-1.

Segunda Action - The 10am showed Middlesex United taking on an undefeated MIT. A physical matchup, Middlesex United pulled this one out 4-2 on a spread attack. MCP United over The Arsenal Maulers 6-1 at the noon kick, with Saheed Alabi stretching the Mauler defense and hitting net a couple of times. MCP looks strong in Segunda, so watch out for them. The 2pm put NE Nor'Easters against the Riders, in the first of back-to-back matches. Mark Speirs dominated this match in his finale, pushing the Nor'Easters to a 2-0 victory. Good Luck Mark with your future endeavors!

The Standings have been updated. Congratulations to our Players of the Match for this week:

• Nick Nuccio (Middlesex United)
• Guddy Hagopian (AC Boston)
• Saheed Alabi (MCP United)
• Chrisitan Nielsen (BIFC)
• Mark Speirs (NE Nor'Easters)
• Nick Barbatl (Boston United)
• Igor DaCruz (BIFC)

The weather looks iffy for this upcoming weekends play. We will make every effort to update you with a GO/NOGO status as soon as possible, but will make every effort to get these games in. Stay tuned to our Twitter feed and our Website for the latest news on this weekends status. Catch up soon!