ALIZA MARGOLIS celebrates after her goal against Belmont on Monday. The senior captain has paced the Warrior offense so far in 2024. (Dan Pawlowski Photo)

By DAN PAWLOWSKI

NICO MANGANIELLO

WAKEFIELD — Wakefield’s new girls’ soccer head coach, Nico Manganiello, knew the Middlesex League was one of the best in the state. 

The Warriors start every season with three games against the league’s Liberty Division, larger schools with universally terrific soccer programs. 

It’s not an easy way to begin a new job.

The Warriors have started the 2024 season at 0-4 but have fell by just one goal in three of those games, competing until the very end against some of the best in the league.

Manganiello, 23, comes to Wakefield from Cathedral where he took the girls’ varsity team to the playoffs for the first time in program history. Also a coach at NEFC and a former college player at Lasell, Manganiello brings plenty of soccer knowledge to his new squad.

“The opportunity to be able to build a program with multiple levels and more experienced players really excited me,” said Manganiello on his interest in the job.  “There’s a strong sense of community in Wakefield and people in the town care about soccer. This was clear to me throughout my interview process and when I finished up, I knew Wakefield was on the top of my list so as soon as I was offered the position I took it.”

The coach was certainly happy to meet his captains for the 2024 season, seniors Rachel Caplin, Megan Clark, Aliza Margolis, Abby Myette, and Shea Suntken. A talented and strong leadership group, these Warrior five are a new coaches dream in terms of buying in and bringing the team together. 

“Our captains are all great,” said Manganiello. “They work hard and lead by example. They all bring a lot of personality into our team, which is great.”

Wakefield’s three Liberty opponents to start the 2024 season were Arlington, Woburn and Belmont, all strong Div. 1 programs. The Warriors fell to Arlington, 4-3, Woburn 4-0 on the road and Belmont 2-1 on Monday back at home. Their first Freedom Division opponent was rival Melrose who were Freedom champs last year. Melrose also escaped town with a 2-1 victory.

Wakefield’s week against Belmont and Melrose is proof that the team continues to improve, especially the defense and starting goalkeeper, senior Emma Waldeck who was especially impressive against the Marauders and Red Hawks this week. Her defense, which includes Myette, Clark and freshman Laurel Renzi who is off to a solid start at centerback, played well in those two most recent games, limiting chances against some incredibly talented strikers.

Offensively, Wakefield has been led by Margolis who scored both of the team’s goals this week. 

The attacking midfielder evened the score against Belmont on Monday, on an unassisted tally, taking possession of a turnover and finishing low and in the corner. 

She scored a similar goal against Melrose, recovering a loose ball that was played up on a perfect free kick from Suntken and striking it on the bounce with a lefty shot that was placed neatly into the bottom right corner. 

Suntken, who has shifted from centerback to midfielder this season, has also had a good start to the season, using her defensive instincts to win possession in the middle and setting up her offense well with either individual dribbling or savvy passes. 

As a unit, the Warriors are quickly gelling in their roles new or old and working hard to build a foundation that will benefit them well as the season goes on.

“We feel like we’re a deep team and that we can play anyone on our roster and they’ll make a positive impact,” said the coach. “The squad’s competitive and I think it’s really going to help us continually get better as the season goes on.

“I like where we’re at. There’s obviously room for improvement, but we’re in a spot where we can compete and I have a lot of confidence in this group. We’ve made some changes from the past and the team is responding well.”

Wakefield is setting a goal to make the state tournament for the first time since 2021. They haven’t won a state tournament game in over a decade.

“The goal is to make the playoffs and go from there,” said Manganiello. “Once you’re in the tournament, anything can happen.”

The new coach is encouraging his team to view soccer as a privilege. Improvement his hard to calculate with moral victories, but there is no doubting that the Warriors have proved early on that they can compete with the best. There is plenty of time for them to take that next step of finding wins and accomplishing their goal. 

“We want to take advantage of our opportunities as a team and as individuals,” said Manganiello. “Really understanding that every time we step onto the field whether it’s practice or a game, that it’s an opportunity for us to put in the work and get closer to our goal.”

Wakefield’s next opportunity will be on Tuesday, 4:15 p.m. at home against Stoneham (0-4).