Jose Escobar guides Mineola boys soccer to long-awaited Nassau Class A championship
Jose Escobar (#27, right arm raised) and his Mineola teammates celebrate after their 3-0 win over Lawrence in the Nassau County Class A boys soccer championship at Mitchel Athletic Complex on Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2023. Escobar scored twice in the Mustangs' victory. Credit: James Escher
Mineola hadn’t been able to call itself a Nassau champion in boys soccer in 18 long years.
The wait to be able to say it again is finally over.
Jose Escobar delivered two goals in the third-seeded Mustangs’ 3-0 win over No. 5 Lawrence in the Nassau Class A championship game Wednesday night at a well-chilled Mitchel Athletic Complex.
“This has been a long time in the making,” Mineola coach Al Cavalluzzo said. “These boys have been together since eighth grade, the far majority of them. They said in eighth grade they wanted to win this. They just worked diligently for four years to get here . . . They willed this to happen. They were going to make sure it happened this year.”
The Mustangs (11-2-2) can now go after the program’s first Long Island championship since 2005. Suffolk champ Kings Park will be the opponent. The game is set for 5 p.m. Saturday at Farmingdale State.
“Happiness and a lot of emotion,” Escobar said about this title.
This was Lawrence’s first time in a county soccer final. The Golden Tornadoes finished at 9-3-3.
“I’m super proud of the boys, just the way they battled from the beginning of the season until now,” coach Gerard Lagasse said. “It’s not a storybook ending, but we had a great season.”
Jesse Kostulias had to make just two saves in picking up his third shutout in three games this postseason.
Escobar gave Mineola the lone goal it would need with 27:13 left in the first half, beating Gabriel Rosales from about 18 yards out.
Emerson Mijango nearly tied it about 10 minutes later with a long free kick that hit the cross bar.
The game’s second goal didn’t come until there was 11:51 left.
Adryan Campos lofted a free kick into the box. Escobar headed it into the net.
“He’s just a natural finisher,” Cavalluzzo said.
Sebastian Knight blasted a free kick into the right side of the net 1:37 later to cap the scoring.
“We can score from multiple players,” Cavalluzzo said. “We can score from a variety of spots.”
