By Rob Abruzzese
Mario Cotumaccio admitted that he didn’t think his beaten-down Aviation team could continue its improbable run. The coach’s team was tired, having played three games in as many days, and injured after a physical second round contest against Francis Lewis.
His soccer squad, however, continued to surprise him and everyone else.
No. 19-seed Aviation continued its Cinderella run with a 3-2 win over No. 7 Tottenville in PSAL Class A boys’ soccer semifinals on Randall’s Island Monday. The Flyers will appear in their first ‘A’ division final 6 p.m. Sunday at a time to be determined. They face top-seeded Martin Luther King Jr., which beat them in the semifinals last season and in 2004.
“Everybody thought we were the underdogs,” junior Jonathan Jaramillo said. “We came from under and showed everybody that we can play. Next we’re playing in the finals.”
It was quite a feat considering the team’s condition and seed. Aviation topped No. 3 Francis Lewis in the second round and No. 6 New Dorp in the quarterfinals. The Flyers placed third in Queens A West during the regular season, but came together when it mattered.
“We hooked up in the playoffs and started playing together,” Jaramillo said. “That has given us the spark to help us get this far.”
A brawl with host Lewis marred the end of the team’s contest last Saturday, leaving players hurt, according to Cotumaccio. Fans rushed the field. It left Aviation depleted. Kevin Muniz and Andres Neira were red carded and missed the next two games. Michael Moreno and Manny Ramones, couldn’t play Sunday because of injuries and others played through the pain.
“It was an all-out brawl,” Cotumaccio said. “In the 15 years I have been coaching soccer, I’ve never seen such a fiasco in my life.”
The Flyers (12-4-0) made the spirited play of banged-up goalie George Blahakis worth by jumping ahead 1-0 when Jaramillo scored in the 40th minute on a rebound of a Kevin Rodriguez shot that bounced off the post. Tottenville (15-3-0) tied it in the 46th minute when Adrian Cosovic scored with an assist from Dardan Nika.
Eight minutes later, Aviation went ahead 2-1 on a header by Ousmane Barry off a Jaramillo pass. Barry and Jaramillo hooked up again to make it 3-1 at the 70th minute. Nika added another goal at the 75th minute to cut the Aviation lead to 3-2, but it was too late at that point.
It hasn’t struck midnight yet for Aviation. Cotumaccio is optimistic it won’t even against national-ranked MLK and Coach Martin Jacobson.
“With no disrespect, his record speaks for itself, he has an excellent team,” Cotumaccio said. “But you know what? He’s beaten me four times, I think it’s time for me to beat him for a change.”
