State Runners-Up Finish No Small Feat for Revere Men’s Soccer

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The disappointment cut through the crisp autumn air, lingering within Crew Stadium as the expressionless faces of Revere’s soccer players watched their opponent, yet again, hoist the championship trophy. There would be no “Miracle of Richfield” on this day for the north Akron high school still seeking its elusive first men’s soccer state title.

The lights on the scoreboard still illuminated “Dayton Carroll 3, Revere 0” as members of the Minutemen squad comforted each other, reluctantly accepted the runners-up trophy and drifted off into the locker room. Different year, same result for a Revere team which dropped its second straight state title match to a private-school powerhouse that has not lost in 36 consecutive games dating back to September 2010.

Yet despite their overwhelming dejection, head coach Sandor Jakab and his players refused to dwell on the season’s unfortunate ending. They could not overlook the fact they achieved the first undefeated regular season in the soccer program’s 34-year history, nor ignore that Revere was the last public school standing in Division II. The positives that emerged during the 2011 campaign – from a sparkling 18-1-4 record to a Suburban League title to a half-dozen playoff romps en route to a regional championship – were simply too numerous for a team that entered the season with major question marks following the graduation of 12 seniors.

“Obviously, you want to be the winning team in the last game of the season, but having an undefeated [regular] season and rewriting the school record books like that is a tremendous accomplishment,” said Jakab, who has 252 victories during his 25-year coaching career.

Dayton Carroll (23-0) played a fast-paced, technical brand of soccer Friday afternoon that proved too much for Revere. The Patriots controlled possession and outshot the Minutemen, 17-4. Junior Drew Kimberly nearly gave Revere an early lead when his first-half shot sailed just over the crossbar. After that, however, Dayton Carroll capitalized on a defensive miscue to take a 1-0 lead just before halftime and seized control in the second half with two more goals, including one via penalty kick.  

“[Dayton Carroll] is a really good team. We tried our best and there’s really not much else we can do,” said senior co-captain Max Palazzo. “We need to hold our heads up high for getting this far.”

Palazzo and fellow senior captain Matt Bezbatchenko were tasked with providing leadership this season for a squad that started two freshmen, four sophomores, two juniors and only three seniors. But bolstered by the offensive output of senior forward Colin Romisher (23 goals scored this season) and the emergence of sophomore goalkeeper Joel Gerberich (eight saves versus Dayton Carroll), the Minutemen matured quickly, earning back-to-back signature victories over rivals Copley and Bay Village in early September and never looking back.

“The interesting thing is we really never made a big deal about [being undefeated] – we just kept playing,” Jakab said. “The fact that we were undefeated was a great accomplishment, but at the time we were always focused on the next game.”

Credit Jakab for ensuring his teams consistently maintain that intense level of focus. The longtime coach was raised to value discipline, growing up in a household where Hungarian was the first language spoken before going on to earn all-county soccer honors at Tallmadge High School and later play semi-professional soccer.

Despite the time investment necessary to raise six children aged 18 months to 12 years and teach Advanced Placement European History courses at Revere, Jakab has managed to establish an elite Division II soccer program. During the past decade, Jakab has developed a soccer factory at the Bath-Richfield high school and deep playoff runs have become the norm (state semifinalist in 2000 and 2004, in addition to 2010 and 2011 state runners-up).   

“We’ve built this up from age five all the way through the high school level,” Jakab said. “We do our best to maintain a skill level and a way we want our teams to play.”

That Revere’s disappointment Friday evening was palpable is not surprising, given the coach and his players’ expectations for the program. The memorable prep careers of Palazzo, Bezbatchenko, Romisher and four other seniors ended, and while they leave an impressive legacy, the ultimate goal of winning a state championship remains unmet.

But over time the tears will dry up and the disappointment will fade, to be replaced with renewed and eternal optimism thanks to a program that reloads rather than rebuilds under Jakab’s proven tutelage.

“Right now we’ll deal with this loss and embrace the moment, but come next year we’ll be back,” Jakab said.