Christ the King took the Grand Central Parkway in Queens on Tuesday morning en route to SUNY Maritime. On the way, the Royals passed by St. John’s University, the site of the CHSAA Class AA intersectional semifinals.
“We said, ‘Guys that’s the dream right there,’” senior midfielder Peyton Atteloney said. “Now we finally made our dream.”
In an odd resumed game, Christ the King knocked off Iona Prep, 1-0, in 40 minutes of play in the quarterfinals to earn its first semifinals berth at the highest level in recent memory. CK (9-5-3) moved up to the ‘AA’ last season and lost to Iona, 1-0 in overtime, in last year’s final eight.
The game was continued from Saturday when blizzard-like weather conditions forced the league to suspend the match at halftime with no score. In an interesting twist, Christ the King coach Ovid Cusu was unable to be on the sideline, because he’s a math teacher at I.S. 93 in Ridgewood and was not able to get out early for the 11 a.m. start. Junior varsity coach Hans Francke took over the helm.
“We kind of got a little nervous that he wasn’t gonna be here,” sophomore Andres Brock said. “But we knew if we played our game, we’ll be the better team and we were.”
It was Brock’s goal in the 51st minute off Iona Prep goalkeeper Alex Kapp’s hands that gave Christ the King the lead. Cusu, who was following the game on NYPost.com’s live blog, said he could barely contain himself when he saw it went final.
“I was running in the halls and kids were looking at me like, ‘This guy is nuts,’” Cusu said with a laugh via phone.
It was the coach’s goal to finish with a winning record and at least reach the semifinals in the preseason. At the time, that seemed like a lofty expectation especially since CK went 7-10-0 last year in just its first season at the ‘AA’ level. This league has been forever owned by powerhouses Archbishop Molloy and St. Francis Prep – making the final four a difficult proposition for a neophyte.
“I think Christ the King soccer is on the CHSAA map now,” Cusu said.
It wasn’t just that the Royals won, either. It was how they beat Iona (9-5-3), the defending intersectional champion. Christ the King dominated possession with a very technical game. Granted, Iona’s Marist-bound striker Cesar Ceja was playing with a broken orbital bone. But CK controlled play from the start and should have scored a few more times if not for Kapp’s performance.
“We just possessed the whole game,” Atteloney said. “That’s our game. That’s what we work on all the time in practice.”
The task at hand now is beating title favorite St. Francis Prep in the semis at 4 p.m. Friday at Belson Stadium. Christ the King won’t have to pass by St. John’s now. The Royals will be there.
“It’s an accomplishment we wanted to have,” Cusu said. “I know the guys are confident. They say, ‘Coach, we can do it.’ I believe now.”