Dartmouth FC won eight South Coast Soccer League Championships in 2021. The eight teams were invited to represent the league at the Massachusetts Tournament of Champions (MTOC).
MTOC took place over three days, June 25th through the 27th in Lancaster, MA. There were approximately 144 league championship teams ranging from grades 5 through 12+ from 93 different Massachusetts’ towns at the event.
Of the ninety-three towns, Dartmouth held the distinction of representing the greatest number of teams at the event. Of the eight teams, three of them made it to the finals with two winning the state championship for their respective grade group.
In addition to the club’s competitive success the Dartmouth Grade 9-11 Girls Division 2 was awarded the coveted Sportsmanship Award by the tournament’s Sportsmanship Committee. The award is given to teams that demonstrate respect for fellow players, coaches, spectators, and referees.
Grade 12-PG+ Girls State Champions
Back row (L-R): Coach Nelson Furtado, Jillian Swass, Ellie Cook, Aaliyah Padilla, Monica Eires, Kyleigh Wheaton, Hannah Wheelden, Taylor Oliveira, Kathryn Seguin, Amaya Marshall, Assistant Coach Carlos Freitas
Front row (L-R): Annika Furtado, Sophia Gioiosa, Alyssa Araujo, Randi Medeiros, Savannah Freitas, Sabrina Pires, Erin Good
N/A: Ella Will, Logan Piva, Samantha Penacho
Grade 9-11 Girls Division 1 State Champions
Back row (L-R): Assistant Coach Lee Cojocaru, Alexandra Cojocaru, Ella Pacheco, Bridget Markey, Mira Herlihy, Katie Smith, Sophie Caldwell, Alexia Almeida, Maryellen Silvia, Gabriella Santos, Coach Joe Santos, Assistant Coach Raquel Santos.
Front row (L-R): Olivia Santos, Aileen Boyle, Amanda Zatir, Jenna Mello, Grace Geiger, Erin Mello, Maddie Wright, Kaylin Rutkowski, Julia Downey.
N/A: Kylie DaCosta
MTOC Scoring Recap:
Game 1 against West Boylston (Win 4-0): Gabby Santos (1), Grace Geiger (2), Alexia Almeida (1)
Game 2 against Wilmington (Win 1-0): Erin Mello (1)
Game 3 against Walpole (Win 2-0): Grace Geiger (1), Madeline Wright (1)
Semi-Final vs Easton (Won 2-1 in OT): Goal by Maddie Wright in 1st half and tied up by Easton in 2nd half. With minutes left in 2nd half, critical stop by Dartmouth defense with indirect kick in the box sending it in OT. Goal in 2nd OT by Maddie Wright (1) clinching the lead the game winning goal.
Final vs. Littleton (Won 5-2): Goals by Grace Geiger (1), Alexia Almeida (1), Madeline Wright (2), Alexandra Cojocaru (1 PK). 2-1 halftime Dartmouth lead. Three more Dartmouth goals in the second half to clinch the win and overall state championship for Grade 9-11 Girls.
Head Coach Joe Santos: This was a skilled, high work ethic and committed group of girls who showed this early on with February outdoor practices in 25 degree weather. Solid goal keeping and defending yielding 3 shutouts in the 1st round of play. The transition to attack often caught our opponent on their heels and the majority of the 7 goals in 3 games were on counter attacks. Precision passing from our midfielders and play to open space followed by fast strikers with strong finishes got them to the final four and eventually the overall championship. Along with this and the demonstrated “never quit attitude”, we kept rotating fresh legs and every player had a good set of minutes in every game giving us a great advantage. Kudos to the coaches as well as we often observed the opponent’s weak spots and collaborated on formations and player positions to exploit them. The majority of this team’s players were town only but played at such a high level proving that hard work and determination pays off. I am proud of their accomplishments as this will be a positive memory they will always smile back on.
Assistant Coach Lee Cojocaru: We have a great group of smart, athletic players. Each game presented different challenges - defensive blocks of 10 players in the group stage, solid defense and counter attacks against Easton in the semifinal, creative midfielders and strong offense in the final game against Littleton. But the team raised to each challenge and adapted successfully to the coaching instructions in order to win each game.
With his experience and knowledge of the game, coach Joe worked tirelessly in practices to prepare our team for any potential scenario during the regular season and before the tournament.
Shout out to our tough competitor in the SCSL - Fall River - playing against them helped us prepare for the strong and organized teams we met at MTOC.
Special shout out to our central defender Bridget Markey, who in my view was the MVP of the team and the reason for our defensive success at this Championship Tournament (only 3 goals allowed in 5 games).
Assistant Coach Raquel Santos: When players get to the high school level, commitment and communication becomes one of the greatest challenges in organizing a team. This team specifically had girls from several towns and high schools which meant the commitment from the players and parents was key in a successful season. One of my main goals was to be able to provide a space for the girls to have open communications where they could voice their questions or concerns. We shared a group chat that I would text weekly in and sometimes daily towards the end of the season. This was one of the highlights for me, not only did we build relationships on the field but off as well. I had one sister on the team but it felt at times that I had 19 and I can’t wait to cheer them all on in their future endeavors. I’m so proud and grateful to be a part of this experience and be a role model to such an amazing group of girls.
# womeninstem
Grade 9-11 Girls Division 2 - Finalist and Sportsmanship Award Recipients
Back row (L-R): Assistant Coach Kristy DeSouza, Justine Raposa, Aniyah Mendes, Ava Costa, Hailey Martins, Jillian Hughes, Coach Jeremy Costa, Adeline Ablett, Isabelle Seguin, Lauren Kiser, Emma Green, Lindsey Klein, Coordinator Derek Oliveira.
Front row (L-R): Hannah Rosa, Ava Oliveira, Makayla DeSouza, Nina Cunha, Sydney Medeiros, Makai Vincent, Sarah Kelly.
Grade 9-11 Boys Division 1 - South Coast Soccer League Champions
Back row (L-R): Assistant Coach Matt Canniff, Andrew Sousa, Braden Medeiros, Owen Carter, Liam Fogarty, Harrison Boyle, Luke Canniff, Noah River, Ricardo Macedo, Coach Heldar Araujo.
Front row (L-R): Dustyn Gaspar, Manuel (Louie) Freitas, Sean Correia, Luke Bassette, Preston Araujo, Samir Hijazi Pablo Medeiros, Nick Carvalho, Sebastian Araujo.
Grade 9-11 Boys Division 2 - South Coast Soccer League Champions
Back row (L-R): Coach Mark Kruger, Assistant Coach Rick Martinez, Nathaniel Wentworth, Caiden Demanche, John Brum, Jake Landers, Matt Furtado, Jonah Correia, Mason DeAlmeida, Corey Melo, Avery Reid, Andre DaCosta, Assistant Coach Paul Furtado.
Front row (L-R): Civen Shrestha, Luke Bloom-Glover, Brady Kruger, Lucas Martinez, Nicholas Ferreira, Nolan Dennehy.
N/A: Chris Hughes, Corey Sullivan, Hunter Bolarinho
Grade 8 Girls Division 1 - South Coast Soccer League Champions
Back row (L-R): Coach Marco Montez, Haley Zexter, Ava Pacheco, Meagan Pimentel, Katherine Cheesebro, Gabriella Montez, Jenna Rock, Assistant Coach Kristy DeSouza.
Front row (L-R): Remy Barber, Ella Whelan, Aubrey DeSouza, Rafaella Hathaway, Katherine Canniff, Elizabeth O’Neil.
Grade 7 Boys Division 1 - South Coast Soccer League Champions
Back row (L-R): Jaco Gravato, Michael Hauck, Konstantinos Psichopaidas, Brennan Carter, Tyler Porto, Giovanni Fernandes, Andrew Schwarzmann, James Almeida.
Front row (L-R): Landon Soares, Andrew Catulo, Landon Raposa, Noah Sperry, Caiden DaCosta, Aiden Petipas.
Coaches: Kevin DaCosta, Luis Almeida.
Grade 5 Boys Division 1 - South Coast Soccer League Champions
Back row (L-R): Coach John Couto, Luke Fern, Tyler Martins, Connor Polochick, Drew Martin, Dallas Cunha, Dylan Dionisio, Ryan Bogie, Assistant Coach Navi Cabral.
Front row (L-R): Paulo Rocha, Nathan Costa, Ronald Taylor, Brendan Martin, Caleb Kron.
N/A: Luke Christensen, Hoyt Hottel
