Many months ago, in late August, a dream was thought of by a group of aspiring soccer players in Port Washington. The dream was to win the first county championship for their town in the history of high school sports. At the time, it was seen as just a far-fetched fantasy, but with a group which gelled so well, it turned into reality by the start of November. Port Washington varsity soccer had somehow fallen under the radar and reached the Class A County Finals to play Long Island powerhouse Massapequa for the Nassau County Championship. However, isn't the simple fact that the boys were one win away from making school history, but rather the events and games that led up to this monumental opportunity.

Playing in Conference I-A in Nassau County is like a boxer taking a beating night after night in the ring. Port Washington Boys soccer was up for that test. By playing in one of the most difficult conferences on Long Island, the team was putting itself in a better position to learn from their mistakes and to hopefully use those lessons as building blocks for the playoffs. Starting the season with a discouraging 0-3 record, all the other teams and coaches forgot about Port Washington. Left for dead, Port resurrected their season, but not the way you would think a team would. After winning against Oceanside and tying Syosset, the boys looked to their night game to inspire them for an inspirational run. Playing Lawrence, on one of the first cold nights of the year, the boys saw this as an opportunity for the entire town to see what Port soccer is all about, and also as a chance against Oceanside, winning by a score of 6-2, Port went into the county playoffs seeded number four.

Port would go on to play Long Beach and Lawrence in the first and second rounds of the single elimination tournament. Matt Levering scored twice in the game against Long Beach and Port won by a score of 4-1. Lawrence, which Port needed redemption on in the worst way after losing that crushing night game a few weeks before, was still an admirable opponent. Port scored during the first half, and never let anything get by them, as both Anthony Matinale and Jason Thrope played dominating defense. Goalie Anthony Platt had yet another stellar game and Port had its first shutout of the year, in the most opportune time, the playoffs. The final score was 1-0 and Port was on its way to the county semifinals at Hofstra. Their opponent was a difficult Bellmore JFK, and on such a large stage, it was a very nerve racking experience for the boys. However, they kept their composure and Kevin Davies went to work upfront. He scored three goals and the defense held up well enough for an exciting 4-1 victory, and a trip to the county championship. Their opponent would be Massapequa, whom they hadn't beaten all season. Port knew, that they weren't the ones expected to be there. They had triumphed over adversity, the bonding between the players was so great, it truly felt like a family. "This is one great group of guys," said midfielder Milan Petkovic, and they really played like it too. However, the guys fell just short of their dream, losing to Massapequa by a score of 3-0.

A season that was at first seen as a disappointment, turned into a fabulous run for an underdog squad. Working together the team built chemistry off the field, and put that to work on the field as well, to create a true winning formula. The entire team should be for the team to make up for their slow start and win an important game that was needed to be won for a good seed in the playoffs. After losing to Lawrence in the first game of the season, the team was determined not to let that happen again. Scoring within the first five minutes of play, on a goal by midfielder J.M. Kostallas, Port looked like they had that fire in their eye that was necessary to win that all important game. The game was played on the football field, making it more accessible for the lights and for more seating for the audience. So with that, the crowd began to grow and was making a lot of noise by the end of the first half. Port struck again late in the first half. Off a throw-in and a Kostallas cross, Emilio Diaz pushed the ball through, heading it in, to make the score 2-0 Port at the end of the first half. In the second half, however, Port fell asleep on both sides of the ball, defense and offense. Failing to convert on some opportunities and allowing the mediocre Lawrence offense drive deep into Port territory. Lawrence went on to score 3 straight goals with under 25 minutes left to play in the game, and to give them a 3-2 lead. The loss was unbearable. In front of the entire town, and family and friends, Port let a golden opportunity to win an important game slip away. This was the turning point in their season. "We knew we never wanted to feel that way again," said star forward Kevin Davies, and so they never really did again. Port went on to tie their next two games against the two top teams, East Meadow and Massapequa, both of whom Port lost to the first games they played. Then against a tough Syosset team, which Port tied 1-1 in a bitter match up in Port Washington, the team came back and won a key game by the score of 2-1. Kevin Davies scored two goals with just under 10 minutes to play, to win the game for Port. After a dominating performance in their last regular season game congratulated on their inspiring run and teamwork. A championship was not won, but the power of teamwork proved it can go a long way.