Captains Announced for 2017 Season

John Agnitti

The CHS Boys Soccer Program is happy to announce that John Agnitti, Abe Garber and Jake Verille will serve as tri-captins of the 2017 team.

All three young men are members of the CHS class of 2018.

Agnitti joined the varsity team during his sophomore year. He has played key minutes in the back over the past two years. His athleticism and versatility allowed him to play many positions with great success.

Jake Verille

Verille joined the varsity team straight out of middle school and he made an immediate impact- even scoring the lone goal in the 2014 team's tournament game as a freshman. He is greatly respected by his teammates which led him to being named captain of the 2016 team as well. This year, he was named a Hockomock League All-Star and honored by HockomockSports.com as a Best IX. Verille also plays for the Bulldog varsity basketball team where he is also a captain.

Abe Garber

Garber has been the Bulldog goalkeeper for most of the past two seasons. His shot saving ability is among the best in the league. His vocal leadership from the goal will be critical to next year's successes.

These three represent what is best about Bulldog Soccer and Canton Athletics. They will lead a motivated group of fellow seniors and underclassmen who are ready to take the next step to success in the fall of 2017.

Wrapping Things Up on 2016 Season

A very successful 2016 season came to an abrupt end at the hands of a very talented, top-seeded, unbeaten, unscored-upon Nauset team on Sunday, November 6th...but not before the Bulldogs had pulled together and rebounded from our first losing season in 10 years with an impressive run of soccer that led to a final mark of 8-7-5. The team earned its first tournament victory in 4 seasons and finished 2nd in the Hock Davenport Division. 

It is with great honor and sadness that we say goodbye to our graduating seniors- all of whom have left a permanent mark on our program in their own way.  Congratulations and thank you to: Sammy Papakonstantino, Cole Duserick, Matas Leveckis, Sean Mitchell, Danny Hartnett, Marco Mendes, Ben Waterhouse, Patrick McLaughlin, Mohammad Sambo and Matt MacKay! Your hard work and dedication to this program has been 2nd to none!

Members of the 2016 Bulldog seniors with their parents. 

Several members of the team were recognized by the Hockomock League for their fine seasons.  Jake Verille and Paul Corcoran each earned All-Hockomock honors while Griffin Roach receieved Honorable Mention to that team. Abe Garber was also selected by HockomockSports.com to join Corcoran and Verille in the HockSports.com All-Star game in Attleboro on Saturday. 

The large group returning for the 2017 campaign has much to thank the 2016 senior for. They were great role models for all of our underclassmen. 

'Dogs earn convincing tournament victory

Thanks to an unfortunate coin flip, the Boys Soccer team had to travel on Friday for a preliminary round Tournament game at Bristol-Plymouth as the flip gave the Bulldogs the #17 seed and B-P the #16 seed.  But the 'dogs didn't seem to mind the road trip as they earned a convincing 4-1 win.  

The 'dogs allowed an early goal in the contest but rebounded almost immediately to tie it up and take the lead.  Both goals coming off the foot of Jake Verille- one off a corner and one on a free kick. The game remained 2-1 through the first half and for much of the 2nd, before Simon Cruz blasted a shot from the corner of the 18. The B-P keeper made a great save but Paul Corcoran was right there to tap it in with his left foot.  With just minutes remaining, Sammy Papakonstantino went bar-down from 16 out, icing the tourney win for the Green and White.  Ben Waterhouse was the player of the game, controlling the midfield play for the Bulldogs. 

The Bulldogs now get the opportunity to travel to #1 seeded Nauset Sunday at 5:00pm in Eastham.  The upset-minded 'dogs have quite the challenge ahead of them as Nauset is 18-0-0, having outscored their opponents 94-0 this season. 

Crazy final regular season game ends in 4-4 draw

It was a back-and-forth game at Stoughton on Monday afternoon as the Bulldogs had to score 3 goals in the final 7 minutes of the game to earn a 4-4 tie with the Black Knights. The draw was all Stoughton needed to qualify for the MIAA state tournament and sends the Bulldogs into the tourney on a 2-game unbeaten streak.

The Bulldogs hit two posts in the first 4 minutes of the game but couldn't manage to find the back of the net and the Black Knights struck first- taking a 1-0 lead in the 14th minute. But just one minute later, Matt MacKay broke through on a breakaway set up by a Paolo Ruggeri clearance and a great challenge by Muhammad Sambo. MacKay calmly poked the ball into the top corner in a beautiful finish.  The game stayed tied at 1-1 until the half. Stoughton scored two early 2nd half goals but the Bulldogs didn't quit. The scoreline stayed at 3-1 for most of the half but with just 7 minutes left, Paul Corcoran sprung free and cut the lead to just one. Two minutes later, Ruggeri buried an open chance from 8 yards out. Just a minute later, Stoughton interrupted the Bulldog momentum with a goal of their own-once again putting the Black Knights on top.  But with just 1:15 remaining, Griffin Roach broke free and tied it a 4-4. Jake Verille was the provider of 2 assists on the day.

The team awaits State Tournament news which will be released on Wednesday.

Gillette provides perfect setting for tourney-qualifying upset Win

The Bulldogs ended a skid of tough results with a huge 1-0 win over Mansfield Friday night at Gillette Stadium.  The win qualified the team for the MIAA state tournament for the 11th time in the past 12 years and improved the season's record to 7-6-4 with just one regular season game remaining.

The 'dogs came out flying playing into a stiff wind in the first half.  Within the first 2 minutes, Canton had hit the post and forced two big saves by the Hornet goalkeeper, but despite the early pressure, the 'dogs were forced to hold on for most of the tail end of the first half as a relentless Hornet attack and a howling wind combined to make life very difficult on the Bulldogs.

The Bulldogs came out on the front foot in the second half and created many great chances to take the lead, but it wasn't until midway through the half that Griffin Roach collected the ball 25 yards out and hit a low, hard strike into the bottom left corner of the Mansfield goal. The Bulldogs would create several more excellent chances to double the lead and Mansfield had looks at a tying goal as well, but the game ended with Canton holding onto the key 1-0 win.

Jake Verille, Ben Waterhouse and Roach were dominant in midfield, controlling much of the game in the middle-third. Danny Hartnett, Pat McLaughlin, John Agnitti and Paolo Ruggeri were well organized and tough all night long in denying the Hornets many scoring chances. Goalkeeper Abe Garber did not have to make many saves but controlled his box all game long- earning his 5th shutout of the season.

The team travels to Stoughton on Monday afternoon for a 3:30 game- the last of the regular season. MIAA Tournament seeding is announced on Wednesday with play expected to kick off on Friday.

2006 Championship team honored Saturday Night

Nine members of the 2006 Hock Championship team were honored at halftime of Saturday night's Canton-Randolph game on this- the 10 year anniversary of their magical season. 

The 2006 team went from worst to first coming off a 3-win season in 2005 to drop only 2 games in 2006. The team won the Hockomock League back when there was only one division with nine schools. The squad then went on to the Sectional Semi-Final before falling to Midfield.  

The team instilled a new winning attitude and kicked off a period of success that is unparalleled in soccer in the area.  The team would follow up the 2006 championship with league titles in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 and would advance to at least the Sectional Semi-Finals for 8 straight seasons. 

Representing the 2006 squad Saturday night at CHS was Jake Shapiro, Alan Berch, Anthony Crespi, Brandon Lyons, Devin O'Gorman, Matt Wong, DJ Murray, Danny Corcoran and Nick Saraf. 

Thanks to that team for ushering in an era of success in the CHS Boys Soccer program and thanks for coming back so that we could say thanks!

Win and 2 Draws extends unbeaten streak to 7 games

It was another unbeaten week for the CHS Boys Soccer team as the squad began a run of three, 3-games weeks by earning a win and two draws.

The week started with a 2-2 draw with non-league opponent Marshfield. The game saw goals by Paul Corcoran and Sammy Papakonstantino- who also provided the assist on Corcoran's goal on a beautiful one-time penetrating ball. There were many more chances in the game for the Bulldogs to pull ahead, but each chance was denied by the Rams.

The mid-week contest saw the Bulldogs host defending D2 State Champion Oliver Ames.  The home side was not on the top of their game and had to brave a pressing attack by the Tigers for much of the night.  Canton goalkeeper Abe Garber played very well in the 0-0 draw- earning his 4th shutout of the season.

Saturday night saw a back-and-forth battle with non-league opponent Randolph that ended with a 3-2 Bulldog win. Papakonstantino got the scoring going in the 1st half, heading in a Jake Verille corner kick.  But a Bulldog communication breakdown just minutes later, led to a Randolph goal. But the 'dogs came back and grabbed the lead before halftime when Muhammad Sambo combined with Dillon Anderson who slid a great ball in to a streaking Cole Duserick who scored his first goal of the season.  The home team came out flat in the 2nd half and surrendered a goal and the game remained 2-2 for much of the 2nd half.  But with just 7 minutes left, Griffin Roach stepped up to a direct kick from the left flank and calmly placed the ball over the Randolph goalkeeper for the winning goal.

The team jumps back into the Davenport this week, with three road games- NA, Milford and Sharon.

Win and Draw extends Bulldog's unbeaten streak to 4 games

A 1-1 draw with Franklin on Wednesday was followed up with a 3-1 win at Taunton Saturday night, extending the Bulldog's current unbeaten streak to four games and improving the team's record to 5-3-1 at the mid-way point of the season.

Tuesday's hard-fought 1-1 draw with Franklin saw the Bulldogs surrender an early goal before bouncing back to earn the tie.  Jake Verille's brilliant free kick from 25 yards out on the right flank, mid-way through the 1st half, found the inside of the far post and teammate Ben Waterhouse was there to head in the rebound.  The game was back-and-forth from that point on with both teams creating and squandering chances to win.

Saturday night would be a different story as the Bulldogs traveled to Taunton and exploded for three goals in the first half.  Griffin Roach got the scoring going on a rocket of direct kick that dipped over the wall and just under the bar. Roach would find Paul Corcoran with a perfectly weighted through ball with 15 minutes left in the half and Corcoran (the team's leading scorer- 6g, 2a) coolly doubled the lead.  With just 7 minutes left in the half, Ben Waterhouse tucked in a Jake Verille corner kick to make it a three-goal first half. Taunton had scored narrowed the lead to 2-1 before Waterhouse provided the two-goal cushion. Final score- 3-1 Bulldogs.

The team has clawed its way to the top of the Davenport Division of the Hockomock League at the mid-point of the season, just a point ahead of the Sharon Eagles. The 'dogs are in for a whirlwind of a 2nd half of the season as they will play 9 game in 19 days.  That run starts with a non-league battle with Marshfield at home on Monday night at 6:00pm.

Corcoran's third goal of week leads 'Dogs past Stoughton

Saturday night saw lots of rain and lots of tough soccer played at Memorial Field as the Bulldogs hosted Stoughton.  The two teams swapped moments of control in the well-played game but Canton managed to put together a great scoring play with just 5 minutes remaining, leading to a 1-0 CHS win.

Conditions were tough for possession soccer and, as a result, much of the contest turned into a physical battle. Control of high school soccer games often comes down to who can win the 50/50 battles at midfield and Saturday night's conditions only amplified that.  When the 'dogs were winning those battles, the game was played in Stoughton's end and when the Black Knights were winning those battles, the game was played in the Bulldog end. 

Despite a strong defensive effort by the back four of John Agnitti, Danny Hartnett, Pat McLaughlin and Chris Miline, Bulldog goalkeeper Abe Garber was busy- particularly in the 2nd half- but he met every Stoughton chance with confidence in earning his 3rd shutout of the season (1.0 gaa.) 

With just 5-minutes remaining, Griffin Roach played a great long, clearance to Paul Corcoran, who controlled it and found Ben Waterhouse heading to the right flank.  Waterhouse put a great move on his Stoughton mark, attacked the endline and found Corcoran, who had made a great near-post run.  Corcoran then calmly knocked the ball in for his 3rd goal in as many games. 

The Bulldogs are now 4-3 and have won 4 of the last 5 games.  They host Franklin on Wednesday afternoon at 3:45 and travel to Taunton on Saturday night at 6:00pm.

'Dogs fight back to .500 with come-from-behind win

Things were looking pretty dismal by halftime of the Canton-Foxboro game at Ahern Middle School in Foxboro on Wednesday night.  The cold rain was falling hard and the Bulldogs found themselves down 2-0 with little signs of life.  But an inspired group of young men took the field in the 2nd half and came out flying- exploding for goals and earning a huge 3-2 victory.

The wet field was an issue all night as the sloppy surface played a part in just about all of the goals in the game.  But the Bulldogs came out in the 2nd half on the front foot, winning 50/50 battles and applying tons of pressure on the Warrior back four.  Paul Corcoran got the Canton scoring going when he redirected a Griffin Roach corner kick off the bottom of the bar and into the back of the net. Corcoran would be the provider of the next two goal scorers as he found Ben Waterhouse on a great crossing ball from the left side and Waterhouse cleanly finished his first goal of the season. With just 3 minutes remaining, Corcoran laid a simple ball off to Paolo Ruggeri who couldn't find a shot with his strong left foot so he pulled it back and hit an arching ball with his right foot from 25 out that got by the Warrior keeper- icing the 3-2 win.

The win evens up the team's record at 3-3-0.  It comes on the heals of a frustrating performance on Monday night at home as the team played great soccer but surrendered some tough goals against Sharon, falling 1-2. Corcoran scored the sole Bulldog goal on a great pass from Simon Cruz.  Junior Chris Milne played his first minutes of the season in this two-game stretch and played two very strong full games. Kudos to Milne.

The team hosts high-scoring Stoughton High School (more goals than any other Hock team thusfar this season) on Saturday night at 7:00pm.

'Dogs even up record with shutout victory

Sophomore Paolo Ruggeri's nifty little flick off of a Griffin Roach service in the 9th minute was all the Bulldogs would need to earn an important 1-0 home victory over Milford Saturday night.   The Bulldogs had several chances in the early going but only managed to find the back of the SkyHawk goal once- but that was all that was needed.

The back four of John Agnitti, Matas Leveckis, Danny Hartnett and Patrick McLaughlin all played well in keeping Milford's creative players away for the Bulldog net. McLaughlin played his best game of the season- jumping on ball after ball to help the Bulldogs regain possession.  The only time the 'dogs backs bent was with 8 minutes remaining when Milford's right forward snuck in and took a blistering, low, hard shot that goalkeeper Abe Garber stretched out to save- preserving his 2nd straight shutout.

Jake Verille was poised and in control of the midfield all day.

The victory comes on the heels of a win over NA earlier in the week and evens the team's record at 2-2. The team hosts Sharon on Monday night at 7:00pm

Heading Back to Gillette Stadium!

The CHS Boys and Girls Soccer teams are heading back to Gillette Stadium to face the Mansfield Hornets for the 2nd straight year.  The double-header will take place on Monday, October 24th with a 5:15 kickoff for the Boys and a 7:15 kickoff for the Girls.  A battle of JV teams will take place during an extended halftime of each game.

We are hoping to get a huge Canton crowd there to enjoy the stadium and our soccer!

Tickets are available at the CHS Athletic Office. Email coach Erickson for details- ericksond@cantonma.org.

Canton Youth Soccer Night at CHS Soccer Double-Header

Tessa Cudmore- '17

The Canton High School Boys and Girls Soccer teams will be facing off in a double-header against league rival Milford High School tomorrow- Saturday, Sept. 24th in our first-ever Canton Youth Soccer Night!  The games will take place at CHS's WWII Veterans' Memorial Field. Parking available in the lower and upper lots at CHS.

Varsity Boys Kick-Off- 5:00pm

Varsity Girls Kick-Off- 7:00pm

Both teams are looking to even off their record with wins over the SkyHawks. A strong showing of support from the local soccer community would be huge!  JV teams kick off the action in the afternoon with the Boys JV team playing at 1:30 and the Girls JV playing at 3:00.

Paul Corcoran- '19

Ticket prices are $5 for adults and students and $3 for senior citizens...BUT If your young soccer player wears his/her Canton Youth Soccer Jersey, they get in for free! 

We will also be taking orders for tickets to our games at Gillette Stadium on October 24th. Tickets are $25 and also get you a ticket to the last home game of the season for the New England Revolution on 10/23. Plan on heading to Gillette so catch some great high school soccer??? Plan on bringing your checkbook to our games Saturday night and secure your tickets! Thanks!

Come down and support the team!

Thanks and go Bulldogs!

'Dogs open homestand with victory

The Boys Varsity Soccer team earned its first win of the season on Tuesday night at home, 2-0 over North Attleboro.  The game marks the first time the two teams have played as Davenport Division rivals.

The Bulldogs were on their front foot early but were unable to create too many full chances in the first 15 minutes before breaking through on the first of two goals by Paul Corcoran. The goal came on a great cross by Paolo Ruggeri that found the head of Griffin Roach who forced a save from the Red Rocketeer keeper. Jake Verille then forced another save and this time, Corcoran was there with a clean finish.

The game remained 1-0 for the rest of the half. Early in the second, Verille stepped up and won a ball in midfield and proceded to play a perfect ball to the feet of a streaking Corcoran who finished the breakaway with poise.

Goalkeeper Abe Garber made a couple of key saves down the stretch in preserving the first shutout of his season.  The two center back tandem of Matas Leveckis and Danny Hartnett were excellent all night long.

The victory moves the team's record to 1-2.  They host Milford High School at 5:00pm on Saturday Night for Canton Youth Soccer Night.

'Dogs fall to Attleboro 1-0 in final minutes of opener

It wasn't the start to the season that Canton Boys Soccer fans were hoping for, as the team showed some signs of what could be great play, but surrendered a late goal to a tough Attleboro side, falling 1-0.

The Bulldogs managed to maintain the edge in possession on the day, but only took the edge in territory after halftime. Despite a great combination of possession and control of territory in the 2nd half, the Bulldogs struggled to create quality chances. With just six minutes remaining, Attleboro took advantage of a dangerous free kick in the Bulldogs' back 1/3 and found the back of the Canton goal on a beautiful header. The Green and White would threaten a couple of times in the waning minutes of the game but failed to find the back of the goal, with the game ending with a 1-0 loss.

Abe Garber played well in net for the Bulldogs while his two central backs- Danny Hartnett and Matas Leveckis were strong on the day.  Jake Verille came alive in the 2nd half to really help the Bulldogs find their way but the goal scoring chances were too few to really threaten the Blue Bombardiers' goal.

The team can rest and regroup as they don't hit the pitch again until next Friday when they travel to King Philip (1-0-0).

Pre-Season done. Next up -- Trip to Attleboro Saturday

A long off-season came to an end with a successful pre-season of training and scrimmage this past week.  More than 45 boys came out to be a part of the program and now make up a JV team and a Varsity team.

The varsity squad features 17 returning players from last year's roster- all are fired up and ready to improve on the 2015 season. Joining the Varsity team this year for the first time are--- Senior Muhammad Sambo, Juniors- Chris Milne & Dillon Anderson, Sophomore Mike Mazzola and Freshman Alejandro Correal.   Captains of this year's team are Jake Verille, Ben Waterhouse, Sammy Papakonstantino and Danny Hartnett.   Click here for a full roster. 

There are some new faces around the sidelines as well.  Chris Murray (2012) comes back to help coach the team he led to 4 Hockomock Championships. Murray has just completed a fabulous 4 years at WPI where he studies engineering and captained the soccer team. Back to help for a 2nd year is Jake Shapiro (2007). Shapiro played and graduated from MIT.  He brings with him this fall a fellow MIT soccer alum to assist in coaching our goalkeepers- Dylan Rankin.

This year's JV team is being coached by Nick Saraf (2007).  Saraf was a key part of the Bulldog's resurgence in the mid-2000s and looks to put his own stamp on the program this fall.

Both teams begin their 2016 season on Saturday night, September 10th at Attleboro at 5:30pm

Congratulations to our Four Seniors!

Canton High School Boys Soccer is proud of our four members of the Class of 2016 who will be continuing their pursuit of higher education in college next year. This program is thankful for the hard work these four boys have put in over their four years here at Canton High School, and we wish them luck as they move on to their universities and beyond. The names and schools of our Class of 2016 seniors are listed below:

Joe Basile- University of Massachusetts Amherst
Brian Eagles- Bentley University
Patrick Hession- University of Dayton
Kevin Messinger- University of Massachusetts Amherst

Congratulations and good luck to the class of 2016!

Important Meeting- May 24, 2016

There will be a mandatory meeting for any boy interested in joining the CHS Boys Soccer program next fall on TUEDAY, MAY 24th from 2:45-3:30 in Canton High School's Distance Learning Lab. 

The meeting is for:

• All returning players
• All interested incoming 9th graders
• New players welcome!

Please spread the word!

Click here for a flyer about the meeting.

Captains for 2016 season named

The CHS Boys Soccer team will be led by a group of four captains for the first time in the program's 30+ year history this fall.  Seniors Danny Hartnett, Sam Papakonstantino and Ben Waterhouse will be joined by junior Jake Verille in leading the 2016 Bulldogs- who look to rebound from a disappointing 2015 campaign.  This year's squad is filled with high character leaders across the board in all grades.  This particular group of four individuals will stand shoulder-to-shoulder with a proud group of Bulldogs ready to take on the Hock in the fall.

Important Boys Soccer Meeting

There will be an important off-season meeting for any current high school boy interested in playing soccer next fall on Tuesday, March 15th at 2:45 in the DLL.  The meeting will include discussion and distribution of information on some off-season opportunities, captains, the 2016 schedule and other important items. The meeting will run from 2:45-3:30. An open discussion with some CHS Soccer alumni will follow for anyone who wants to stick around to participate. That should wrap up by 4:00/4:15. That will be a great opportunity for any existing player.

Not able to make it? Stop by and see coach Erickson at least a day in advance and let him know- or email him at ericksond@cantonma.org