MaxPreps 2013 Soccer Early Contenders: St. Anthony's girls

St. Anthony's (Melville, N.Y.) has been voted previously as having the top high school athletic program in the state of New York, including by Sports Illustrated. It's been a Top 50 program in the country as well.

Football has long been a signature sport at St. Anthony's, but you need balance to attain overall athletic program greatness. That's what the Friars girls soccer team, coached by 25-year veteran Dave Prutting, helps bring to the equation. They are one of 10 fall girls teams to be honored as a national title Early Contender, presented by adidas and Dick's Sporting Goods.

The St. Anthony’s girls are coming off back-to-back New York Catholic High School Athletic Association titles, ones that were anchored by standout players such as Maggie Bill (now at the University of North Carolina), Sydney Arestivo (Fairfield University) and Jessica Lukas (Dartmouth).

See all the 2013 Fall Soccer Early Contenders

But it was a member of a strong sophomore class last season who sent the Friars to Buffalo for the Catholic Association State Tournament. Midfielder Mackenzie Kober scored the lone goal in a 1-0 win over Long Island rival Kellenberg in the CHSAA championship game.

Then-junior Tricia Hanley, the Friars' leading goal scorer, and Lukas each scored in a 2-0 win over Sacred Heart Academy of Buffalo in the state semifinals. St. Anthony's achieved the latter despite missing a week of practice prior to the game due to superstorm Sandy.

St. Anthony's will be returning 11 players with starting experience, including All-League player Katie Gonsalves and junior Rebecca Safranek, who started her first game in the 2012 state final, a 6-0 shutout over Notre Dame Academy of Staten Island.

With such a large contingent of returning players, the Friars are looking forward to another outstanding season. This is a team - and an athletic department - with such dedication to the cause that it has its own indoor practice facility, as seen in the accompanying photos.

See the entire St. Anthony's photo gallery.

Local outlook: "The Friars struck gold a quarter of a century ago when they selected Dave Prutting, then 49 years old and with scarcely any experience beyond youth leagues, to run the girls varsity soccer squad. Some 400 wins later, he's the iconic and beloved coach at a school that wins -- and typically wins big -- in just about everything. Our favorite Prutting-ism: He's been known to have his players work on taking corner kicks with their opposite foot ... during games."
- John Moriello, President, New York State Sportswriters Association (@nysswa)