Nichols Varsity Boys Soccer Wins 2020 Monsignor Martin Championship

The Nichols varsity boys soccer team finished off a remarkable season Sunday with a 2-1 victory over Canisius High School in the Monsignor Martin High School Athletic Association (MMHSAA) championship game.

 

Anthony Rambino ’22 opened the scoring less than four minutes into the game with an assist from Jesse Adamu ’21. After Canisius tied the game up, Michael McHale ’22 set up Lawton Zacher ’22 in the 35th minute for the eventual game-winning goal. Lukas Benchley ’21 made four saves in goal to secure the win.

 

The varsity boys soccer team, which peaked as the #1 team in New York State by MaxPreps and entered the weekend ranked ninth, earned their first MMHSAA league championship since 2008 with the victory over Canisius. Nichols defeated St. Mary’s of Lancaster 5-1 on Saturday to advance to the title game. It was the team’s second consecutive MMHSAA championship appearance, winning the title a year after an overtime loss to St. Joe’s in the 2019 title game.

 

Read more about the Vikings’ championship win in this recap from the Buffalo News. The Buffalo News also placed Nichols boys soccer at #5 in its final Power 10 ranking of the best high school sports teams from this fall season.

In the end-of-year awards, Alex Kompson '22 received highest honors, as the MMHSAA named him the Defensive Player of the Year. Joining Kompson on the All-Catholic First Team was Adamu, Rambino, Thomas Enstice '22 and Michael Tuber '21. McHale and Joe Blackley '22 made the MMHSAA All-Catholic Second Team. Kompson was also named to the Section VI All-WNY Overall Team, and Adamu and Tuber made the Section VI All-WNY Small School Team.

 

Congratulations as well to the Nichols varsity girls soccer team, which finished the season as MMHSAA finalists after a 2-0 loss at Nardin on Sunday. The Vikings earned a 3-2 overtime win over St. Mary’s of Lancaster in Saturday’s semifinal to advance to their fourth consecutive MMHSAA championship match. Mirann Gacioch ’22, Sophia Jones ’23 and Linda Ullmark ’24 were also named to the Monsignor Martin 2020 Division A All-Catholic Team.