Season of change for Baldwin
While early, Baldwin boys’ soccer is experiencing a season of many changes this year. For starters, many of the Bruins have gone through a position shift compared to last fall.
“We had guys have move into different roles due to unexpected injuries so I think it’s a learning process, it takes time when you have to pull certain people from the position they’re used to playing and put them somewhere else,” coach Chris Soupios said. “We’ve had a core group of the same guys that have been playing on varsity for the last three years and a lot of the guys were used to playing with that group, so it’s a matter of a bunch of guys playing in new and different roles.”
On the topic of changes, there’s a huge one in net: the Bruins have a new keeper in junior Faheim Jenkins. “He’s a really positive kid,” Soupios said of Jenkins, who is competing with senior Brandon Torres. “His attitude is ‘there’s always the next day’ so with the right mindset he doesn’t let these little things get to him and just push forward.”
Junior midfielder Eric Ramos is one of the most standout players to Soupios, described as someone with a great view of the game, able to read plays and stop them before they happen.
There’s also seniors Robert Batista and Justin Valle, and Soupios said that when those two are firing on all cylinders in the midfield, it makes everything else click.
In addition to that, Baldwin has junior Emilzon “Raul” Lovos, Soupios talked about him as scrappy player on the field but also as someone who’s taken on a leadership role within the team.
Up front and owning the Bruins’ lone goal so far is junior striker Devonte Young.
“We’re really hoping for some big things from him this season,” Soupios said. “He’s got a ton of natural talent, it’s just a matter of putting it all together on the field.”
The youngest on the team, sophomore defender Max Ascencio-Cueva, is growing into his cleats as a third generation player on varsity, with his older brothers having moved up to playing college soccer in the College of Staten Island and Molloy University.
“His growth from freshman year to sophomore year has been tremendous,” Soupios credited. “He’s one of our best defenders on the team and we’re excited to see the future he’s got ahead of him.”
In the coming days, Soupios’ goal is simple and straightforward: see those talked-about adjustments make their way to the pitch in the form of a win.
“[Looking forward to] the chance to get back out there and get a W,” he said. “You want to change that feeling, obviously you don’t want losses to pile up, and one good moment could change a season, and while you want it to be [in] the first game, I think ultimately it’s about finding that point where things click.”
Things are looking hopeful for Soupios.
“We’ve had moments where 10, 15, 20 minutes we really like the way we’re playing, but we want to get to the point where we’re doing that for a full 80 minutes, and play together as a unit rather than individual pockets of good play and get the entire team to be on the same page that way,” he explained.
