Trumansburg boys continue producing talent

Just two seasons ago, the Trumansburg boys soccer team featured 12 seniors as it reached the Section IV Championship game. Since then, the teams have been much younger. There were three seniors on the team last season and just four this year. Yet that has not slowed down the program at all, as Trumansburg is currently undefeated and outscoring opponents 15-1 through three games.

Head coach Jason Hodge has helped build Trumansburg into a soccer factory, producing young talent seemingly every year. In fact, the team leaders in goals this year, Nico Potenza and Anthony Blomquist, are both sophomores. Hodge discussed where the consistent talent stems from.

“I think a lot of these guys play soccer year-round,” Hodge said. “They just love the game. They’re working at it continuously. We have a couple of kids that play in some premier club teams up in Syracuse and Binghamton. The guys love it for sure. They are a very talented bunch. But we’re just hopeful that we can keep moving forward.”

The Blue Raiders have shut out two opponents straight in dominant fashion after a tightly contested season-opening victory over Spencer-Van Etten/Candor. In that game, Trumansburg trailed 1-0 at halftime before tallying two goals in the final 40 minutes to win the game. Hodge talked about what he saw from the team in the come-from-behind victory.

“We definitely weren’t down on each other after we got scored on,” he said. “We got scored on early; I think it was 20 minutes in or something like that. The guys just never put their head down. They never pointed the finger at each other. They just kept battling. It was great to see their true character come through and win the game.”

Trumansburg is looking to change its fate this season after coming up just short of titles the past several seasons. The team played to a draw with Marathon in the IAC Small School Championship game in 2017 and 2018 before losing to the Olympians in 2019 and in the spring of this year. Hodge and the team have their eyes on the prize this season.

“We’re just not settling for what we accomplished yesterday,” Hodge said. “We’re going to keep being hungry. The guys know that we’re perennial second-place finishers, whether it comes to sectionals or IAC, and I think these guys are tired of it. They’re ready to move on and be in the spotlight.”

The shortened season earlier this year affected teams in different ways. For Hodge and the Blue Raiders, he believes the few games that were played have contributed to the team’s early success this season.

“That was a unique situation because we had some ninth-graders last year who probably wouldn’t have made the team if it was the fall season just because they wouldn’t have had the experience,” Hodge said. “Last season in the spring, we were kind of hurting for numbers. A couple of those younger kids, those freshmen, got a chance to get some playing time, and they really impressed me. It was good for them. A bunch of those guys really got some confidence knowing that they could play with some 11th- and 12th-graders last spring and compete with them and be successful.”

What also has helped the development of the young players is the leadership of the four seniors on the team, who are all IAC All-Stars. They are Kuyler Coffin, Mason Zoner, last season’s IAC MVP Drew Masters and goalkeeper Colby Grove.

“It’s interesting because not very many of [the young players] have had me as a coach,” Hodge said. “It’s kind of stepping into a whole new team, as opposed to only two or three kids jumping on board, just with COVID and then having a missed season in the fall. We got some of those kids in the spring, but it was like starting all over with them. The seniors, Kuyler, Drew, Colby and Mason, have been great so far for us. They’ve really shown the guys what it means to be a Blue Raider on the soccer field.”

What has made Trumansburg stand out on the field this season is the team’s ball control and dominance of possession. That has contributed to the exceptional scoring margin the team currently holds, and Hodge discussed where that play style comes from.

“One of my big focuses at the high school level is possession,” Hodge said. “I know on their club teams, it’s more one-on-one skills. They try to give the ball to the best player and let their best player make the moves or progress the ball up the field. Going back to my days at Ithaca College, I always watched the women’s teams compete, and I really took away them playing team soccer. They were really moving the ball and possessing the ball with coach [Mindy] Quigg. It’s been a progression from there, I would say.”

The possession-based game of the Blue Raiders has blended well with the constant flow of talent into the program as the team looks to get over the championship hump this season. Trumansburg will put its smooth style of play to the test against the Class B Waverly Wolverines on Sept. 16.