Heading into the long-awaited 2017 soccer season, Eastern Boys Soccer was on the brink of remarkable history with a combined win total of 499 over its 46-year existence. It’s quite an understatement to label Eastern’s athletic program as a dominant force in the Olympic conference, and with a well-validated boys soccer program, the 500th win milestone was simply a fraction of Eastern’s potential success in the upcoming season.

“It’s exciting,” said senior Alex Serata, “to have such a historical feat in the palm of your hands, and it’s even more exciting to execute the goal we had set.” Serata comes off the bench for the Eastern Vikings in well-rounded fashion, being just one of several key pieces vital to his team’s success.

Coming off a monstrous 13-5-1 season in 2016, the Vikings’ record currently sits at 7-2-2. Eastern is quickly and quietly becoming the powerhouse of their division behind head coach Steve Kosyla, a former soccer player at Eastern decades ago.

“It’s something they achieved while they were at Eastern High School,” Kosyla said as he spoke on the potential future reminiscence of these 2017 Vikings. “Twenty years from now, they can sit back at the class reunion and say, ‘Oh yeah, remember when we played on that team and we got the 500th win’.”

Coach Kosyla made it clear that such a milestone is to be recognized completely in opposition to the popular belief that it may draw attention away from future contests during the season. Five hundred total victories in any sport is nothing other than an absurdity unmatched by most South Jersey athletic programs, and it’s certainly not an accomplishment to go unnoticed. In the same sense, the notable 500th win only counts for one regarding the chase for the lead spot in the conference, and as glorified as they may be, the Vikings are ready to put away the short-lived celebration and maximize their potential moving forward this season.