Titans eye playoffs despite slow start

The Toll Gate boys soccer team is grinding through its regular season schedule and has struggled to the tune of a 1-6 record through its first seven games.

The team’s lone victory came on opening day in a 4-1 win over Rogers. Adam Vespia notched a pair of goals while Brandon Molina and Ryan Enos also scored.

The Titans became a powerhouse with a loaded roster, reaching the state finals in 2022 and returning to the playoffs last year. The team graduated nearly its entire starting lineup this fall and has felt the effects in the early going.

“This season hasn’t started off the best but the new guys that have come in have improved. They have worked hard and I believe our play doesn’t reflect our record. We’ve been a very good team in most games and maybe deserved to win one or two of them, but that’s how it goes sometimes,” said Toll Gate coach Jason Melo.

Despite the shaky start, Melo has seen steady improvement the past few matches and the team still believes that it can not only qualify for the postseason, but go on another deep run should it get there.

“One hundred percent this team is capable of making the playoffs and making a long run once we’re in the playoffs. Right now, we’re just focused on our next game and we’ll be taking the rest of the season one game at a time and see what we can pull off,” Melo said.

Leading the way to this point has been a quartet of captains in Lorenzo Salvador, Adam Vespia, Gabe Politelli and Jack Sabatelli.

“Lorenzo Salvador is really stepping up as a captain this year. He’s really stepped into that leadership role for us. Adam Vespia has been a great player for us and controls the game well. Gabe Politelli is also a key figure in our team, he’s a guy that the younger guys look up to,” Melo said.

Melo has also seen some of the younger players begin to turn the corner.

“We were unsure if they’d be able to, but they’ve done a great job of coming in and making a statement this year with (earning) roster spots.”

The team played Mt. Pleasant on Wednesday, but the results were not available at press time.

Melo believes that the team simply needs to play for a full two halves to win some of these upcoming matches and re-enter the playoff hunt.

“In the majority of our games, I really believe we were the better team, but we just need to play for 80 minutes,” said Melo.