With the latest news of Sachem North’s Joe Scally embarking on a pro soccer career with NYCFC – he is the second youngest player to sign a pro contract, in case you missed it – , it got me thinking about other pro soccer prospects from Sachem.
The Sachem community has produced pro athletes in the NFL, MLB, NHL and NBA, but never the MLS or even second tier, NASL. Joe Scally, a freshman at Sachem North, would be the first.
There is only one person who would know the roster of professional soccer players from Sachem, and that’s because he coached them all. Not coincidentally, Frank Schmidt also coached Scally as an 11 and 12-year-old as his youth soccer trainer.
“Joe is a very special young man, not just in talent but personality,” said Schmidt, who won 345 games and two states titles from 1974-2005 at Sachem. “Everyone who knows him is rooting for him to make it.”
Schmidt, a founder of the Sachem Youth Soccer League and inductee of the Sachem Athletic Hall of Fame, speaks volumes of Scally, who did turn in a season of JV soccer and basketball with the Flaming Arrows.
“You could even see then he was way beyond his years technically, tactically and psychologically,” said Schmidt. “Couldn’t be happier for him and his family.”
As for the other pro players from Sachem, here is a rundown from coach (it may be missing a name or two, and if you know of others, email editor@sachemreport.com):
- Steve Schoen, Class of 1971: A goalkeeper, he played for the Connecticut Wildcats of the American Soccer League. The ASL, at the time, was second tier in America behind the North American Soccer League.
- Harkan Wiffeuson, Class of 1981: A midfielder, Wiffeuson was only at Sachem for one season as an exchange student from Sweden. He went back to his homeland and played professionally at the division two and three levels.
- Michael Kirmse, Class of 1990 (pictured above): A striker and midfielder, he played professionally at the division three level in Germany for two years and returned stateside to play seven seasons in the USISL, and two seasons in the Indoor NPSL. In Germany he played in Regionalliga West/Südwest with FSV Salmrohr and helped them win a Rhineland Cup in 1996. In 1997 he signed with the Rochester Rhinos in the USL A-League and played for five seasons, winning three A-League championships. Kirmse was part of the Rhinos team which took the 1999 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup becoming the only second division club to beat an MLS team (Colorado Rapids). He is also an inductee of the Clarkson University Athletic Hall of Fame having graduated as one of the school’s top all-time scorers.
- Daniel Brienza, Class of 1998: A 2017 Sachem Athletic Hall of Fame inductee, Brienza was the first freshman to play varsity soccer at Sachem since 1960. He was an All-American in high school and All-Conference at Johns Hopkins before playing professionally in Brazil for Sao Paolo FC and on lower tier clubs in Italy.
- Michael “Whitey” Russo, Class of 1998: A striker, and the younger brother of Sachem North varsity coach Chris Russo, he played professionally indoors in the New England area.
- Mike Mourelo, Class of 1999: A midfield and center back, he played professionally for a few seasons in Puerto Rico after playing collegiately at Bryant University.
- Sergio Saccoccio, Class of 2001: A goalkeeper, who after a very successful career at Northeastern University, played for the New Hampshire Phantoms of the USL and San Diego Gauchos of the PDL. He was also America East Conference Rookie of the Year, and a two-time All-Tournament Team, two-time All-New England selection in college.
- Keith Zeier, Class of 2004: Although he never played professionally, he was offered a contract to play in Amsterdam, instead opting to enlist in the U.S. Marines and serve his country. Zeier was injured and lost a leg due an IED that blew up his humvee in Iraq. He later became even more of an inspiration as he ran marathons, climbed mountains and overcame great odds.
-Words by Chris R. Vaccaro