Fucito is back in the game

Michael Fucito is on the brink of becoming the all-time leading scorer in Harvard men's soccer history. He's a two-time All-Ivy selection, an All-American, is one of 10 finalists for Lowe's Senior CLASS Award, and among the 48 players on the Hermann Trophy "watch list," college soccer's answer to the Heisman Trophy.

Those honors are "nice" for the former Brooks School star from Westford. But he's most proud of his selection to the All-Ivy and ESPN All-Region Academic teams.

His reasoning is very clear. In 2005, after earning Ivy League Rookie of the Year honors, Fucito made a mistake, left Harvard and worked for a year.

"I had some academic problems, did something stupid and was punished for it," he admitted, without going into detail. "It wasn't something I was proud of and I paid the price. Looking back now I realize that while all those honors are nice, what I'm really proudest of are the academic honors. To be able to overcome those difficulties I had and attain those honors is something special."

As special as he is in the classroom - he currently maintains a 3.3 grade point average - Fucito is a very gifted soccer player.

After not playing what would have been his sophomore season, Fucito was reinstated at Harvard and picked up where he had left off. He was named the team's MVP after scoring nine goals and nine assists. Last season, he finished with 11 goals and seven assists. This year, through 13 games, he had nine goals and four assists. With 23 career assists, he is three off the record set by Will Kohler from 1993-96, and his 87 points are seven shy of the mark held by Chris Ohiri from 1961-64.

"You come to Harvard and scoring records aren't something you think about," said the 5-foot-9-inch, 165-pound forward. "But suddenly you're a senior and bang, you find yourself right there. I think it shows that hard work has paid off. I have had a lot of support from my teammates."

Fucito, who'd love to play for the New England Revolution after he graduates, wasn't even sure if he'd be playing this year. This past summer, he underwent surgery to repair a torn hip labrum, performed by Dr. Bryan Kelly, the same physician who operated on Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell for a similar problem.

"He's one of the most athletic and one of the most determined individuals I have ever coached," said first-year Harvard coach Jamie Clark. "He probably shouldn't have played the whole season because of the hip injury, but that's his nature. He worked hard to get himself back into shape. To be honest, he really hasn't been fully healthy this season until maybe three weeks ago. Yet he put up All-America numbers while playing at 85 percent."

The winner of the Lowe Senior CLASS Award, which focuses on the "Four C's" - classroom, character, community and competition - will be announced next month in Frisco, Texas, at the NCAA Championships. The Hermann Trophy winner will be announced in January.

Safety Brendan Smith of Andover, the 2004 New England Prep School Player of the Year at Hampton Prep, intercepted a pass and returned it 48 yards for a touchdown with 12 seconds left to lift Northwestern past Minnesota, 24-17, last weekend in a key Big Ten contest. "I got the ball and just thought, 'touchdown,' " Smith said. "I think everyone should think that when they get the ball in their hands with however many seconds left. I tried to take it to the sideline and make something happen." The win over the 20th-ranked Gophers was the seventh of the season for Northwestern and boosted it to 24th in the Bowl Championship Series poll . . . University of Massachusetts at Lowell junior Jamie Gillis of North Billerica is the Northeast-10 Conference Goalkeeper of the Year after a regular season in which she played every minute (1,554) of every game and chalked up six shutouts with a goals-against average of 0.98. . . . Former North Andover captain Peter Koskores, a junior and soccer captain at New England College, was selected All-Commonwealth Conference. . . . University of Massachusetts at Boston's Katherine Wall of Arlington was the Little East Conference defensive soccer player of the week. Wall anchored a defense that allowed just one goal in 200 minutes in a 1-1 tie with Framingham State and a 1-0 win over Plymouth State. . . . The Colonial Skating Club of Acton is sending a handful of local skaters to national and Eastern Sectional championships. Among those headed to the US Junior Figure Skating Championships Dec. 8-13 in Lake Placid are Bianca Capone of Andover, Karolyne Shieh of Carlisle, and Michelle Parece of Reading. Competing in Eastern Sectionals this week at the Skating Club of Boston are John McKenna of Boxborough and Christopher Fernandes of Hudson, N.H. . . . The Salem, N.H., boys volleyball team has reached streaks of national proportion. After beating Timberlane in straight sets, the Blue Devils (19-0) now have won five straight state titles. In addition, the squad ran its tops-in-the-nation boys winning streak to 93. Salem has yet to lose since being elevated to varsity status five years ago and don't look for the streak to end anytime soon. Salem returns six of its top eight players next season. . . . Andover's Simon Voorhees and Stoneham's Ali Simone won their respective divisions in the State Track Coaches Cross Country Invitational in Wrentham.

Sports Notebook ideas or information may be sent to JohnPVel@aol.com.