The Frontier boys soccer team has been knocking on the door of a state championship for years.
The Redhawks made it to the MIAA Div. 4 state championship game in 2021, reached the D4 Final Four in 2022 but in 2023, were upset in the Round of 16.
Frontier came back with a vengeance last fall. The Redhawks went 10-1-1 in league to clinch a share of the Moriarty League championship and earned the No. 14 seed in the Div. 4 state tournament.
The postseason started with a bang, as Frontier won an overtime thriller over Nantucket, 2-1. Going on the road to take on No. 3 Pittsfield, the Redhawks sprung a 4-3 upset and in the quarterfinals against Tyngsborough, Gus Radner blasted home a goal late to send Frontier to the semifinals.
The Redhawks were unable to get past Lynnfield in the semis but it was still another successful season for Evan Horton’s squad.
With a number of returners, and a program that is now developing young players each year that step up to the varsity squad, there’s no reason to think Frontier won’t be in the mix for trophies this fall.
“We’re trying to get back to the Division 4 Final Four for back-to-back seasons and for the fourth time in five years,” Horton said.
The team’s success saw them move up to the Holley League this year, competing alongside Chicopee Comp, Westfield, Chicopee, Central and South Hadley.
Pioneer, which won its first Western Mass. title in program history, will have a new-look team as it competes with Turners, Greenfield, Athol, Franklin Tech and Hopkins in the Tri-County League North.
Mahar hopes to turn things around in the Schmid League, competing with Granby, Monson, Westfield Tech, Smith Academy and SICS.
Here’s a closer look at each team.
ATHOL
Coach: Justin Brown
League/Division: Tri-County North/4
Last Year’s Record: 3-13-2
Roster: Brent Boudreau, Karim Thompson, Mason Testa, Drake Wing, Ayden Cowen, Dillon Boudreau, Noah Kapise, Marcus Testa, Zaccarias Garcia, Jason Gerard, Adam Rodriguez, Ralle Anderson, Bryce Archambault, Liam Bevis, Andrew Botti, Jaxon Koutrakos, Lucas L’Ecuyer, Derek Melvin, Oliver Spooner, John Robertson
Outlook: With three seniors and two juniors, the Bears have a young team that Brown says has a bright future. Eight players on the roster are freshmen and have grown up playing travel soccer together and bring instant chemistry to the pitch.
Boudreau and Thompson are the returning seniors and will be key cogs while Wing brings stability in goal.
“We have a very young but talented team,” Brown said. “We may lack size but not physicality.”
FRANKLIN TECH
Coach: Dan Prasol
League/Division: Tri-County North/5
Last Year’s Record: 2-12-4
Roster: Sorin Marin, Jon Gheorghita, Kaiden Price, Conner Herzig, Dyllan Duval, Cody Yetter, Nick Prasol, Jacob Thomas, Carter Leete, Sawyer Cadran, Dorin Marin, Nathan Gheorghita, Josiah Muniz, Jonah Wiles, Santiago Buri Rosales, Kevin Tomas, Austin Platek, Jakob George, Owen Brown, Max Briere
Outlook: Prasol, the JV coach last year, takes over for Kurt Richardson and inherits a young squad that he hopes can set the foundation for years to come.
“We’re looking to see improvement and build team chemistry,” Prasol said. “This year is about building for the next couple years. The big goal is to be competitive. Last year we only won two games. Our new league will be challenging but hopefully we can win a few more games. If we’re young and competitive, it’s a sign of good things to come in the future.”
Nate Gheorghita, a freshman, will lead the attack. Marin is the lone senior on the roster and will play in the midfield, Yetter will play a role up top along with Jon Gheorghita and Buri Rosales while Thomas and Leete lead the charge defensively.
FRONTIER
Coach: Evan Horton
League/Division: Holley/4
Last Year’s Record: 15-3-4, D4 semifinals
Roster: Max Millette, Gus Radner, Ian Paciorek, Eric Larsson, Carter Miller, Diego Frazier, Tristan Valderrama, Casey Bestler, Xavier Fripp, Henry Pleasant, Grayson Bishop, Liam Wells, Jasper Gorman, Evan Maio, Conor Prew, Grayden Gifford, Ben Zarotny, Jack Keyes, Jack Cusson, Sebastion Migeon, Mickey Brownlow, Mason Weis
Outlook: The Redhawks graduated five from their 2024 squad and bring back plenty of talent to make a run at a state title.
Paciorek returns up top as a goalscorer while Millette, Radner and Larsson are seniors who will anchor the midfield. Bestler started at centerback as a sophomore and will be a key cog while Cusson, a sophomore, returns in goal.
GREENFIELD
Coach: Erich Leaper
League/Division: Tri-County North/5
Last Year’s Record: 3-12-3
Roster: Malcolm Briggs, Sam Eckstrom, Arthur Fitzpatrick, Liam Grahame-Lawson, Jack Laurie, Cole Cross, James Justin Iavorschi, Lucian Volosenco, Sam Bucala, Evan Reyes, Abdouallah Safir, Grayson Thomas, Anthony Bergstrom, Dylan Collins-Harrison, Masyn Mota, Colby Sheperd, Isaac Tripp
Outlook: The Wave are searching for their first title of any kind since 1980 and are hoping this can be the team to change that.
Laurie is a potent scoring threat up top while Fitzpatrick and Briggs bring senior leadership to the defense. Grahame-Lawson adds to that leadership on the backend as a senior in goal.
Iavorschi and Volosenco are juniors who will lead the midfield.
“We have a solid, dependable senior class leading the way for a young supporting group and bench,” Leaper said.
MAHAR
Coach: Dan Guertin
League/Division: Schmid/5
Last Year’s Record: 1-13-2
Roster: Aydon Davis, Heinin Escobar, Robbie Farrow, Coltin Fausett, Brayden Gates, Maxwell Kimball, Kayden Manjourea-Cortright, Ian Nutter, Maximus Parsons, Caissie Richard, Elias Roberts, Jhean Rocha, Dylan Roy, Clayde Thompson, John Vallejos, Matt Vitello, Orion Whitehouse
Outlook: The Sens will be looking to get things back on track in a new league with a veteran squad.
Davis (defense), Gates (midfield), Parsons (defense), Roberts (defense), Richard (forward), Vallejos (defense), Vitello (forward) and Whitehouse (forward) make up a large senior group.
PIONEER
Coach: Michael Italia
League/Division: Tri-County North/5
Last Year’s Record: 17-2-2, D5 Round of 32
Roster: Judah Glenn, Matan Lerman-Smith, Dani Paquet, Matt Richotte, Hayden Girard, Thaddeus Loud, Jacoby Stumpo, Brody Welcome, Tommy Clary, Anthony Ellis, Connor Guertin, Mauricio Hanono, Nolan Kalinowski, Josh Mauthe, Aaron Meuse
Outlook: It was a historic fall for the Panthers last year, as Pioneer lost just one game in the regular season before taking home the Western Mass. Class D championship, the first Western Mass. title in program history.
Now, Italia is tasked with replacing eight players from last year’s squad, though the Panthers have four seniors and five juniors returning that have been playing together for three years.
That is led by Glenn, Pioneer’s leading scorer a year ago. Lerman-Smith, Welcome, Killeen, Stumpo and Paquet are returners who will lead the midfield while Loud and Girard are juniors who will man the defense. Richotte and Hanono will see time in goal.
“This is a rebuilding year,” Italia said. “The blending of these athletes into another highly competitive team will be a welcome challenge as we work to create our own legacy in 2025.”
TURNERS FALLS
Coach: Matt Kolodziej
League/Division: Tri-County North/5
Last Year’s Record: 9-6, D5 Round of 32
Roster: Sergey Alexeyenko, Johnny Bartolon, Michael Berdugo, Jameson Betters, Jackson Cogswell, Xavier Correa, Rogelio Galves, Brody Girard, Cameron Johnson, Noah Kolodziej, Curtis Kretchmar, Yolvin Ovalle Mejis, Mario Pareja, Kevin Perez Cueto, John Ramirez Martin, Kainen Stevens
Outlook: Turners brought its boys soccer program back in 2023 and after two years as an independent playing a shortened schedule, the Thunder have moved into the Tri-County North and will play a full 18-game regular season this fall.
“We’re very excited about the opportunity to play more games,” Matt Kolodziej said.
With 12 seniors — a number of them being key returners from a team that made it to and won a state tournament game a season ago, Turners will be a threat to win the league.