A Soccer Reunion

Although soccer is the most popular sport in the world, it seems to lose fan interest in the United States after people graduate from college. More people play little-league soccer than any other sport, but most people over the age of twenty-two (including outspoken Boston Globe sports columnist Bob Ryan) believe soccer is a boring sport. The arrival of the World Cup in the United States next summer may very well change the way we perceive soccer, but just as important to the game is the way the sport interacts with the community.

Yesterday's match between the Harvard and Boston College women's soccer teams produced not only an exciting 3-1 Crimson victory but also a touching reunion between three of the game's participants and their high-school coaches and teammates.

Harvard sophomore Sara Noonan and Boston College sophomore Kristina Szczepanski were the best of friends when they played for nearby Winchester High School--and they're still best friends even though Harvard bested BC in the battle of the Boston-based colleges both this year and last.

Noonan was a four-year starter, and both she and Szczepanski played on the 1990 Winchester team that was ranked first among all high schools by the USA Today.

So, Winchester Coach Chris Scanlon thought it would be a nice idea to bring his team (which included several girls who played with both Noonan and Szczepanski) to the game to see his former stars play and to show his team what a quality Division I college game was like.

"The level of aggressiveness at college is very high," Winchester senior Jenna DeSimone says. "But it is also reassuring when they, too, make mistakes."

"It's really a thrill for a soccer coach to see two of his players do so well," Scanlan says. "It's great motivation for my high-school girls to see soccer played at such a level."

It was also a thrill for the players to see that their old friends and coaches had taken time out from their busy schedules to watch them compete at a higher level.

"Winchester has a great soccer tradition," Noonan says. "They like to support their players even when they're no longer at school."

"It's a good feeling to see these people," Szczepanski says. "I love [Coach Scanlan]. He taught me a lot."

Players learn most of the fundamentals in their respective high schools--dribbling, passing, shooting, etc., but in order to succeed they need to learn how to care for each other, how to be part of a large community. These intangibles are what makes or breaks a player further along the line.

"We owe a huge debt to those coaches," Harvard Coach Tim Wheaton says. "In college you can only fine-tune these skills. It's a great honor to work with them."

It is also a pride-booster when someone does something very special in front of the hometown crowd. Such was the case for Harvard freshman Meg Kassakian, a graduate of Newton North High School. Kassakian's former assistant coach Don Satter came to Ohiri Field to watch his former star in action and brought another high school team. Satter and his squad got to see Kassakian beat a couple of Eagle players and pass the ball to wide-open sophomore Megan Hall, who beat the Eagle goalie for the third Crimson goal that sealed the Crimson victory.

"It's one of the benefits of going to school so close to home," Kassakian says. "It's nice to get an assist in front of your old fans."

It is these relationships, among other things, which make soccer a great sport, but is the game improving in the public's eye?

"Definitely," Satter says. "There is no doubt about it."

A crowd of about 75 for a game that wasn't even scheduled to be played at Harvard is certainly a good sign.