Former Clippers play key role in MMA success

October 5, 2012

By Dan Crowley, Falmouth Enterprise

Falmouth High School graduates Brett and Derek Young and Adam Rabesa took their soccer game to the next level as members of the Massachusetts Maritime men’s soccer squad. This fall the three former Clippers are playing key roles in the best start by the Buccaneers in school history.

Brett, two years older than brother Derek, is the Buccaneer keeper and already has five shutouts to his credit. He has allowed just seven goals in nine matches for a 0.76 goals against average. Derek, a midfielder, has a couple of goals and an assist, and from the back row, Adam has chipped in with an assist. Derek and Adam are captains along with teammate Adam Vieira. The team boasts a record of 6-3-1 entering tomorrow’s match at Worcester State University.

Brett is a 2007 graduate of Falmouth High School. Derek and Adam graduated in 2009. All three played soccer for four seasons at FHS. Derek, who played center midfield, was a two-time team captain and was named to the Atlantic Coast League All-Star team in his junior season. Brett, a keeper, was also an ACL All-Star, while Adam, a defender for the Clippers, was named an ACL All-Star Honorable Mention as a senior. This year they are all seniors at Massachusetts Maritime. Derek and Adam have played soccer with the Bucs for four years, while Brett is a three-season veteran. Both Brett and Derek are past recipients of Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference Player of the Week honors.

All three play in the Cape Cod Amateur Soccer League. Brett and Derek play for the Falmouth Tide, while Adam has spent the past two summers with Falmouth United.

“The college game is a lot more physical,” Brett said of the step up from high school.

“I think the biggest difference is the physicality,” Adam said, “that and the speed of the game. You have to make the adjustment pretty quickly.”

“The commitment is greater too,” Derek added. “You spend more time working on and off the field at the college level than you do in high school.”

Next spring the trio will graduate from the Academy; Brett with a degree in international marine business, Derek with a degree in marine engineering and Adam with a degree in marine safety and environmental protection.

“After high school I took some time off,” Brett explained. “I never thought I’d play competitive soccer again. My brother was coming here and he kind of talked me into it. It was a good decision.”

“Playing soccer at Mass Maritime has been awesome,” Adam said. “It’s the main reason I’ve stayed at the Academy. My freshman year I was thinking of transferring, but Coach (Greg) Perry talked with me and I decided to stay. I knew if I could make it, that it would pay off.”

“I came here because I knew I’d have a job after graduation,” Derek explained, “and I knew I wanted to play soccer.”

Last winter Derek worked for a shipping company in the Gulf of Mexico for two months. Adam spent last winter with an internship at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and in March resumed his studies for a semester at Shanghai Maritime University in China, studying environmental engineering.

“You stay in touch with shipping companies shoreside,” Brett pointed out. “You meet a lot of people here. I’ll be working a co-op this winter.”

All three Falmouth High grads would recommend Massachusetts Maritime to those doing college searches.

“You have to be ready for it,” Brett smiled. “It’s not for everybody, but if you can handle the regiment, it is definitely worth it.”

“It’s a great opportunity,” Derek added. “You’ll definitely get a lot out of going to school here. Employers like to see that you’ve graduated from Mass Maritime.”

All three agree that being close to family is a big plus and admit that having support from home has played a major role in their success.

“It’s great to get away,” Derek pointed out, “but it’s good to be close and get to go home.”

As they continue their roles in rewriting the soccer record book at MMA, the three Falmouth natives agree that the soccer team has become a second family as has the larger Massachusetts Maritime community. Teammates scatter around the world after graduation but remain in touch, all part of the greater maritime network.

“It gives you a sense of always having someone there for you,” Adam said. “As athletes we’re brothers, as graduates of Mass Maritime we’re family.”