Somerville boys oust Medford, 3-2
Mike Cugno photos
Medford's David Pires (left) moves in on Somerville's Andre Rolim..
At the conclusion of Somerville’s grueling 3-2 victory over Medford Wednesday night in the North Division 1 quarterfinals, players from both sides met at midfield to shake hands. The show of sportsmanship has traditionally served as a post-game formality. However, for Highlanders’ head coach George Scarpelli, it meant a whole lot more than that.
A Medford native, Scarpelli spent 22 years coaching soccer in Medford, including 11 years as varsity head coach. He led the Mustangs to seven Greater Boston League championships. Growing up, he attended Medford High and even suited up for the Mustangs’ soccer team before graduating in 1987. Scarpelli still lives in Medford and serves on the Medford School Committee.
In other words, Scarpelli has almost spent his whole life on the Medford sidelines. So ending the Mustangs’ season wasn’t an easy pill to swallow.
“It’s very difficult,” an emotional Scarpelli said. “I know a lot of their kids. I hurt because I know their dreams and I know their kids’ dreams. You know, I’m proud of them, because they made the city proud. I wish them a lot of luck next year.”
The Highlanders' (12-6-4) tournament run ended Friday when they lost to Brookline, 2-1, in the North semifinal at Arlington High School.
While Scarpelli still treasures his close ties with Medford, that didn’t stop the Highlanders from pouncing to a 2-0 halftime lead. Three-time Greater Boston League MVP Homero Morais netted the game’s first goal with 23:43 remaining in the first half, while teammate Edgardo Perez Vasquez added the second 16 minutes later.
Every time the Mustangs looked poised to strike, the Highlanders’ defense was there to snuff it out. As a result, the Mustangs rarely saw the ball on their side of the field.
“The key was winning the first ball,” said Scarpelli. “As soon as they touched the ball we quickly dropped behind the ball and won it. If the ball gets behind that line, anything can happen. You see how talented [Medford] is. If they get the ball in space, they’re gone.”
In the second half, the Mustangs almost got a chance to prove Scarpelli right. After sophomore Jonathan Pires scored Medford’s first goal nine minutes into the period, it was looking more and more like Medford would tie it up. However, Morais, a senior captain, proved why he’s one of the best players in the state, burying a rebound into the back of the net to give the Highlanders a commanding 3-1 lead..
With only 8:42 left in the game, victory looked to be in sight for Somerville. But the Mustangs refused to let their season end, as Pires scored again just two minutes later. However, that’s as close as they would get.
“Props to [Medford],” Scarpelli said. “They fought till the last second. Right to the end. Even when we were leading 3-1, I knew it wasn’t over. They left it all on the field.”
Medford, who won the Greater Boston League title, ends their season at 13-3-5.
Somerville made an improbable run for a team that came into the tournament ranked No. 17. However, they’ve earned their claim, having knocked off tournament No. 1 Madison Park Monday night.
“A ranking and position in this tournament is just a number,” said Scarpelli. “We already knew we were a strong team and that we we play very hard. This just proved that. We have a lot of passion. It all comes down to who comes out luckiest in the end. State tournament play is all luck of the bounce. It’s a lot of want. It’s who wants it more. Tonight, we wanted it a little bit more than the other guys.” 
Medford coaches Mike Petrides and Mike Bourne talk strategy on the sidelines.
Waiting for Twitter to feed in the latest...