First-year soccer coaches look to guide teams to state championships

Dylan Martin is in his first season as head coach for Averill Park boys' soccer. (Stephen Weaver) Twenty-two years ago, Holli Mulholland won a state championship in her first season as head coach of the Shenendehowa girls' soccer team.She looks back on that run with pride - and one regret."I probably could have enjoyed that a little bit more," Mulholland said.This week, Shenendehowa is one of 10 Section 2 boys' and girls' soccer programs competing in the state semifinals. Three of those programs have first-year coaches aiming to do what Mulholland did in her first season. The Bethlehem girls (Scott Geis), Averill Park boys (Dylan Martin) and Greenville boys (Jared McAneny) are each led by first-year head coaches. Each inherited a program with its own history and a different set of expectations.For Mulholland, she took over a Shen program built by Jan Federice, who was inducted into the New York State Soccer Hall of Fame in 2021. Federice won 277 games at Shen and shared a state title in 1992. Over 17 years, she won nine Section 2 championships and made six appearances in state title games."I remember that (2004) season like it was yesterday," Mulholland said. "Partly, because I was so young and had taken over a program with a storied tradition of excellence. I remember thinking, 'Do everything in your power every day to give the kids the best experience you can and maintain that tradition of excellence.'"Sometimes, perceived pressure is the worst part of pressure, right?" she said. "The self-inflicted pressure. I certainly felt that."Her response was tunnel vision."I remember just taking it one day at a time," she said. "Just sticking to those goals every single day, and trying to build the culture within the team."She said a new coach's early success is rarely only his or hers.Earlier coaches laid the groundwork. Players put in year-round club work. A team culture was ready to welcome someone new.The 2004 state final provided Mulholland with a lesson she still teaches her players today. Shenendehowa played that game without Ashley Moore, whom Mulholland called "arguably our best" player. Moore, who later played at the University of North Carolina, had left for a U.S. national team training camp after Shen won the state semifinal. Her absence set the stage for an unlikely hero in Deana Semenza, who hadn't played in Shen's postseason run. Semenza came off the bench and scored the game-winning goal in the state final."We talk a lot about that story, about understanding your role, being willing to accept your role in the team," Mulholland said, "and how your role changes as the games and season continues."I called her name to go in the game and she went sprinting down the sideline, started to warm up, came back in. She was ready to go do her job to the best of her ability. … She won the state championship for us. Gives me goosebumps to this day, to be honest."This season, Mulholland is making an effort to soak it all in. The Mustangs beat Cicero-North Syracuse 5-1 in last Saturday's Class AAA regional final at Niskayuna, led by Lillyann Palmer's hat trick. On the bus ride to that game, the coach found herself getting emotional. "This is a fun, kind, hardworking group," Mulholland said.Shenendehowa reached the state final in 2021 and the semifinals in 2023, but hasn't won it all since that 2004 team beat Greece-Athena 1-0. On Saturday at noon, the Mustangs play Section 6's Lancaster at Dryden High School in Cortland, with a trip to the state final on the line.Still, Mulholland isn't easing off. The team's theme this year is "chasing greatness," and she is using this final week to keep building."Let's try to get a little bit better than we were in the regional championship," Mulholland said.Bethlehem's Geis never reached a championship as a player - not in high school, not in college, not beyond. His team spent the early part of the season trying to figure itself out. Now the Eagles are playing in the state semifinals for the first time since finishing as Class AA runner-up to Monroe-Woodbury in 2018."To be this far is beyond anybody's expectations," Geis said, "and, at the same time, it's not like we're playing with house money."Geis said his team has grown into the role of state semifinalist and now believes it has a shot at winning the whole thing. Bethlehem beat Fayetteville-Manlius 2-1 last Saturday. On Saturday at 5 p.m., the Class AA Eagles play Spencerport at Dryden, the same site where Shen plays at noon in the Class AAA semis.The Averill Park boys' team has grown into its role, as well. The Golden Knights last reached the state final four in 2013, losing to Pittsford Mendon, and have never won a state title.When Martin took over at Averill Park, the team was coming off a 3-11-3 season. He met with his players before the summer break, before he had seen them play, and told them a sectional final should be within reach."They all looked at me and kind of chuckled," Martin said. "I saw some funny smiles. I saw some kids with just, like, straight faces."The Golden Knights opened the season with a 2-0 loss to Saratoga Springs. Then came a 6-0 loss to Bethlehem's boys' team, the state's top-ranked team in Class AA and another Section 2 squad competing this weekend. Afterward, Martin told his players the loss was on him."I'm taking responsibility for this game," he said. "I didn't prepare you guys … and we're going to learn from it."He calls it the turning point. He threw out the "kick-and-run" style Averill Park had been known for and built the team around possession and attack.The regular season ended 7-9-2, with a 2-9-1 mark in the Suburban Council. But the Golden Knights beat Hudson Falls and Cohoes to advance to the Class A sectional championship and the goal changed from reaching the final to winning it. Down 1-0 to Schalmont, Averill Park came back for a 3-1 win on goals from Robert Lee, Gabriel Mussett and Liam Hoffman. It was the program's first Section 2 title since 2021. The Golden Knights have kept winning. Last Saturday, they beat Peru 2-1 to reach the Class A semifinals, where they play Lewiston-Porter on Friday at Middletown."This season's been great," Martin said. "It really makes you fall in love with the game of soccer again."Mulholland remembers that feeling from 2004. She's been to this stage, but this time she says she's trying to savor it. Her advice to this year's first-year coaches is simple."I would tell them to do their homework on the other team," she said. "Focus on their team getting better every single day that they can. Focus more on their team than the opponent. Structure a solid game plan."And do the same thing they've done every other game they've tried to win this year."State semifinal scheduleGirlsSaturdayClass C: Stillwater vs. (4) Greene, 9:30 a.m. at MoraviaClass AAA: Shenendehowa vs. (6) Lancaster, noon at DrydenClass AA: Bethlehem vs. (5) Spencerport, 5 p.m. at DrydenClass B: Schuylerville vs. (5) Livonia, 5 p.m. at CortlandBoysat MiddletownFridayClass A: Averill Park vs. (6) Lewiston-Porter, 3 p.m.Class AAA: Shaker vs. (6) Lancaster, 5:15 p.m.SaturdayClass B: Schuylerville vs. (11) Southampton, 8:30 a.m.Class AA: Bethlehem vs. (5) Churchville-Chili, 10:45 a.m.Class D: Northville vs. (11) Smithtown Christian, 1:15 p.m.Class C: Greenville vs. (5) Geneseo, 3:15 p.m.SubscribeThere’s more to Albany with the Times Union. Subscribe today for just 25¢.This article originally published at First-year soccer coaches look to guide teams to state championships.