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Lew-Port Lancers Fall Sports Preview Part I: Girl’s and Boy’s Soccer, Football

The 2018-2019 sports year was one of the most successful years for Lewiston-Porter athletics in school history. Lancer athletes won four Section VI championships, four Niagara Frontier League championships, crowned a NYSPHSAA state champion in the Lancer cheer team, and captured a horde of individual championships and awards. Here’s how the fall teams pan out for the 2019 season.

Girl’s Soccer

Last year was a memorable year for the Lady Lancers soccer program. The girls finished 13-5 overall and a won Section VI A-2 co-Championship for the first time in the history of the program. The last time the girls won a Section VI Championship was in 1999 when they brought home the Class B title. To get a sense of the proud soccer tradition here at Lewiston-Porter, all you have to do is take a look at the west wall in the high school gymnasium at the banners which are littered with examples of the league and sectional dominance of the program: sixteen NFL Championships, fourteen Section VI Class B Championships, and four Far-West Regional Class B Championships, all since the program’s inception in 1979. That is a tremendous legacy to follow, and in the last three years the girls have worked hard to live up to that legacy, qualifying for the A-2 final game twice before finally capturing a share of the title last season. They look to have the same success this season.

Coach Norm Forney is very excited to be entering his fourth year with the team. Last year’s team was balanced and disciplined, and included two NFL First Team selections (Lexi Lindamer and Riley Crum), one NFL Second Team selection (Sarah Woods), two NFL Third Team selections (Stephanie Frazier and Alexa Schultz), and two Buffalo News All WNY selections (Lexi Lindamer, Second Team and Riley Crum, Honorable Mention). Freshman midfielder Sarah Woods led the NFL in assists (18) and finished fifth in the league in total points (28).

The team was honored by the NFBOWS Referee Unit with its annual Team Sportsmanship and Coach of the Year Awards as well. But, Forney said that the most important thing to him was the academic success the team had. “Most importantly to me, we once again earned Team Scholar Athlete status for our high team GPA. I think it’s appropriate to say the girls rocked it last year.”

So, what does that mean for this year? Quite a lot, actually. Eight starters return from last year, including reliable goalkeeper Claire Skowronski, solid defenders Jordan Casey and twins Alexa and Elle Schultz, midfielders Sophie Lindamer, Sarah Woods, and Ella Massaro, and forward Lenee Bowes. With the addition of a few key players from the outstanding JV program that Lew-Port has and the maturation of the bench players from last season, the 2019 Lady Lancers look poised to once again challenge for league and sectional titles.

Boy’s Soccer

Lancer boy’s soccer was very successful in 2018. The team went 16-3-1 last year, won the A-2 sectional championship, and finished third in the NFL.  The only team in the league last year to defeat them was league champion Kenmore East.

Unfortunately, the team graduated 9 seniors, among which 7 were starters.

Jake Westadt (First Team All NFL, All WNY) has left a huge void in leadership and dynamic playmaking ability. Three of the back 4 defenders graduated, including Zach Clayborne (First Team All NFL), Tanner Reisman (Second Team All NFL) and Jake Fleck who was a fast, skillful and tough marking back. The entire starting midfield graduated which includes the previously mentioned Westadt, Marcus Johansson (Third team All NFL), Andrew Perreault, and Will Quarantello (Third Team All NFL) who played a gritty disruptive game against opponents all season.

Despite the graduation of so many key players, the team is optimistic about this season. Joey Zachary who was an All WNY Large school forward, First Team All NFL, and the Niagara Gazette NFL player of the year last year returns for a fourth season on varsity.  Zachary, who returns as a two time captain, finished last season with 20 goals and 22 assists, the highest combined total of all large school players in WNY, and enters the new season with 36 goals for his career.  Roberto Mele (Third Team all NFL) is a three year varsity player and captain that will also be leaned upon as a crafty forward. He has the versatility to create chances for others as well as finish them off himself.  Goalkeeper and captain Joe Beatty (Third Team all NFL) is returning for his third year as well, his second as the starting goalie. Having posted seven shutouts last season and nine for his career, his size and quickness are a valuable asset between the posts with so many solid teams in the NFL.

Jacob Forney is the lone returning defender from the starting line up. He will be the centerpiece of the Lancer defense, with a top notch ability to know where to disrupt scoring chances and possession against opponents. Forney has a unique ability to create chances from the back with his ability to consistently find players in dangerous spaces with great vision, field awareness, and well weighted and timed passes.  Robert Woods (Third Team all NFL) returns as a sophomore that carried meaningful minutes last year. His versatile skill set and pace allows him to create chances or take on the defensive obligation of marking the opponents most creative play makers if needed.

The NFL will consistently present them with a tightly contested match on any given day.  Their first league match against Niagara Wheatfield will present the Lancers with a stern challenge, as Wheatfield returns a large number of starters from a strong team last season that reached the league championship.  Within their division Grand Island is well coached, prideful, and the gold standard for successful high school soccer programs in recent years. In the middle of the schedule Lew-Port will play back to back games against Kenmore East, defending league champions. Lew-Port Boys Soccer has been to three A-2 sectional finals in the past five seasons.

Lewiston-Porter is a community with a strong and prideful soccer culture, and there are high expectations each season. However, the players have a high level of confidence that they will live up to those expectations.

Football

Head Coach: Matt Bradshaw 

2018 record and finish: 4-5, missed playoffs 

Number of returning starters: 11 

Key Returners: JP Stewart, John Wendt, Gino Fontanarosa, Frank Previte, Cory Stack, Jared Rebon, Cooper Krawczyk, Conor Grace 

Key Losses: Joe Powers, Marc Maio, Noah Coppins, Aidan Salik 

Lew-Port just missed postseason play after competing in one of the most competitive divisions in WNY last season. The Lancers certainly have the tools to build on last year with eleven starters coming back, including Frank Previte. They’ll miss two-way lineman Joe Powers. 

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