Huntington's magical season in boys soccer ends in state Class AA semifinal
Huntington's Jayson Chavez, left, jumps for the ball in front of Vestal's Elson Toric during a NYSPHSAA Boys Soccer Championships Class AA semifinal Saturday, Nov. 14, 2026, in Middletown, N.Y. Huntington's season ended with a 2-0 loss to Vestal (IV). Credit: Adrian Kraus
MIDDLETOWN — Huntington’s boys soccer team began the year with a vision of accomplishing something no Blue Devils team had before: qualifying and playing in the state tournament.
While the search for the program’s first state title will continue after Huntington fell to Section II’s Vestal Saturday in the state Class AA semifinal, 2-0, the Blue Devils will leave Middletown High School as the first Huntington side to reach the final four.
“It’s the best season in the history of Huntington soccer,” coach John Pagano said. “We won 16 games — we overachieved, probably — and we outshot [Vestal] 12-6. We just couldn’t score.”
Elson Toric of Vestal (12-3) scored in the 17th minute, finishing a cross from Massimo DiRenzo along the right wing, to give the Golden Bears an early lead. Neither team dominated possession, though Huntington’s chances increased as the game progressed.
Several promising looks went just over the crossbar or wide of the post, with four shots on target. Ezra Oddoye helped create several chances as the team’s attacking midfielder, one of 11 seniors for Huntington (16-5).
“I feel like it wasn’t anything special; just once we got in the box, it got really clogged,” senior captain and forward Robbie Campbell said. “I think, if we took more shots in the second half, we would have got a result. But that’s a what-if.”
Huntington goalkeeper Edwin Caballero received a red card with 6:13 remaining after his cleat connected with the lower body of a Vestal player while Caballero was coming down with the ball. Toric scored the ensuing penalty kick.
It’s a bitter ending to a magical season for Huntington, which lost the county title game to Smithtown West but stayed alive thanks to an at-large bid. It led the Blue Devils to defeat Glen Cove and Section I’s Mahopac, but most importantly, it gave Pagano and this Huntington team an extra 13 days they wouldn’t have had in years past.
“It was just a pleasure, because we were loose every day; we were happy, the vibe was good,” Pagano said. “Coaches and players have different perspectives because of the age and experience, but they seem to get that we had been able to work ourselves into a good place. In the end, it’s just unfortunate.”
Michael Sicoli covers high school sports for Newsday. He graduated from Quinnipiac in 2022 and left with a master’s degree in sports journalism in 2023.
