Riverview boys soccer continued to make strides, capping 2024 season in playoffs

By: Michael Love
Saturday, November 9, 2024 | 11:01 AM

Purchase Photo Options

Purchase Photo Options

Previous Next

The Riverview boys soccer team had a breakout season in 2024 with 10 wins in the regular season and its first trip to the WPIAL playoffs since 2019.

Coach Mickey Namey said his Raiders players represented themselves with a solid effort in a WPIAL Class A first-round game against No. 4 Beaver County Christian at Moon on Oct. 19.

He said the game turned out to be closer than even the low-scoring 2-0 final in favor of the Eagles would indicate.

“We played really well the whole game,” Namey said. “Both goals came off really nice set pieces. We had two fouls right outside the 18, and they got two headers on the back post. We felt good because we only gave up three shots otherwise. When the score was 1-0 before the half, their goalie made a really nice save on one of our players. We also hit the crossbar and the post within the next three minutes. We just couldn’t get that equalizer before halftime. We felt confident coming out of the half. Those set pieces, a free kick or a corner kick, can make a huge difference in a game like that. They were the first goals we gave up on set pieces the whole year. It was just one of those things.”

Namey said practices on the turf at Valley High School and the Pittsburgh Indoor Sports Arena in Harmar leading up to the game were solid with a lot of intensity.

“You could tell before the game in the locker room and on the field for warmups that there were some nerves,” Namey said. “It was everyone’s first playoff game. It was a different dynamic from games in the regular season. But once we got about five to 10 minutes into the game, things kind of faded back to just a normal game. When you play a top seed and a section winner, you might feel like you’re going to get overwhelmed. But the guys worked through those nerves rather quickly, and the game went back and forth from there.”

Riverview recovered from a challenging 0-4 start that featured games against No. 2 seed Winchester Thurston, No. 5 Aquinas Academy, No. 6 Springdale and No. 9 Trinity Christian.

The Raiders returned the favor against Trinity Christian, upsetting the Falcons, 3-2, on Sept. 26.

Riverview finished 5-5 in section play.

“The guys believed in the process and believed they would be able to reap the rewards of that hard work,” Namey said. “This run to the playoffs wasn’t just a one-year thing. It started three years ago with the seniors coming in as freshmen in 2021. To go from 0-16 and playing in a tough section each year, they kept battling because they could see how much the team was improving. Hopefully, this sets the groundwork for future teams. Our numbers are starting to pick up, and there is a lot of enthusiasm for soccer at Riverview, boys and girls.”

The playoff game marked the end of the varsity careers of forward Chris O’Toole, midfielder Drew Hunter, goalkeeper Quin Fischer, midfielder Carter Loughren, defender Matt Orbin and midfielder Renton Biondich.

Loughren, Orbin, Biondich and junior Sidney Vespi did double duty this fall as members of the Raiders boys golf team. Hunter also kicked for the football team.

“The underclassmen bonded with the seniors so much, and you could see that emotion come out after the game,” Namey said. “The seniors came face to face with it being their last game with their teammates, but they also are excited to see where the program can go. They have encouraged the younger guys to recruit more kids to play and to just keep working hard to make sure the program stays at a strong level. It is a goal for everyone to keep up the success and make sure these improvements don’t fade away.”

O’Toole, Hunter and Fisher have been selected to represent the Class A team against a group of Class 2A players at a WPIAL all-star event Nov. 30 at Pine-Richland High School.

O’Toole forged a standout final varsity season as the team leader in goals with 16. He added six assists.

“Chris always was there making big plays,” Namey said. “He was all-section four years, All-WPIAL three years, and the team leader in goals and assists all four years. When he was on the field, he made things happen. He had five or six game-winners this season. He only had one hat trick, but he would be consistent with one or two goals every game. As a coach, you loved to count on it. But we know that production is going to be so hard to replace.”

The Riverview defense gave up one goal or less 10 times, and the Raiders were 8-2 in those games. Fischer, Namey said, always provided a strong final line of goal prevention.

“Quin set a really high standard with all-section honors,” Namey said. “He put in a lot of work in the offseason, and he definitely grew as a player and a leader from the back.”

Hunter suffered a knee injury during a 2-1 nonsection win over playoff-qualifier Sewickley Academy on Sept. 28. He rested a couple of weeks as Riverview had secured a spot in the postseason and returned for the playoff game.

Hunter had surgery Nov. 1, and Namey said he hopes to be back on the field for the all-star game at the end of the month.

“He played almost the whole playoff game and really gutted it out, but you could tell he wasn’t himself,” Namey said. “He just couldn’t make the cuts with speed he normally can make.”

Hunter finished the season with three goals and three assists.

The returning group will be fronted by the scoring ability of junior Devin Murphy. He was second to O’Toole in scoring with eight goals. He also had five assists.

“This turnaround was a product of the guys working together and believing in each other,” Namey said. “There is a lot of excitement for the program to see this success keep going and keep building into next year.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Riverview