New York Post PSAL boys soccer beat writer Zach Braziller breaks down Sunday’s PSAL Class B soccer final on Randall’s Island.
Who: No. 2 Thomas Edison and No. 8 Queens Vocational Tech
When: Sunday, 12 p.m.
Where: Randall’s Island
No. 2 Thomas Edison Inventors
Head coach: Eli Craan
Record: 16-0-2
Player to watch: Robert Soteras
How they got here: Defeated No. 31 Millennium 5-1, in first round; defeated No. 16 Taft, 2-0, in second round; defeated No. 7 Beach Channel, in quarterfinals; and No. 19, James Monroe, 1-0, in semifinals.
No. 8 Queens Vocational Tech Tigers
Head coach: Anthony Ali
Record: 16-1-1
Player to watch: Ozan Cetinkaya
How they got here: Defeated No. 25 Transit Tech, 4-0, in first round; defeated No. 9 New Utrecht, 4-3, in overtime in second round; defeated No. 1 Martin Van Buren, 2-0, in quarterfinals; and defeated No. 5 Thomas Jefferson, 3-1, in semifinals.
Outlook: For the second straight year, the PSAL Class B final will be determined by Queens division rivals. Last year, it was Hillcrest and Jamaica. This year, it’s Queens B-I rivals Edison and Queens Voc.
The two sides played to a 2-all draw on Sept. 14 and Edison prevailed, 4-1, Oct. 5.
Neither had had an easy road to the final. Queens Voc was a minute from elimination in the second round before John Avila scored, forcing overtime, when Cetinkaya produced the golden goal. Full of confidence, the Tigers rolled past top-seeded Martin Van Buren and No. 5 Thomas Jefferson. Cetinkaya, who scored three times against Edison, is the Long Island City school’s star. He was second in the city in scoring with 33 regular-season goals and has added six during the postseason. But he isn’t alone. Sophomore John Velasquez had 19 tallies during the year, and scored against Jefferson.
Edison, meanwhile, has relied more on defense, shutting out three of its four playoff opponents, led by goalkeeper Dalvi Herrera. The Inventors have a balanced attack, keyed by Soteras, a talented sophomore, and senior Travis Sales. The two combined to score 25 goals during the year. Junior Yovanny Vargas added 10 assists and senior Nayab Akbari had nine.
Edison has come a long way in recent years, winning just two matches four years ago. They finished second, behind Queens Vo last year, and made the second round of the city playoffs.