P-J file photo

Caleb Foley and the Maple Grove Red Dragons had waited a full year for the opportunity that finally presented itself in the Section VI Class C boys soccer final at Eden High School.

On Oct. 26 of last year, Randolph was able to come back from an early deficit to claim a 2-1 win over Maple Grove, securing its first outright sectional title in 29 years.

That loss did not sit well with anyone on Dutch Hollow Road, especially Foley, who returned for his senior year as a team captain with reprisal in mind.

That desire for revenge against the Cardinals was evident from the first touch at William Bos Field in early November, with Foley and company firing shots on target early and often as they broke out to a hot start.

Throughout the opening 40 minutes of play, Maple Grove was turned away time and time again by greenhorn Randolph goalkeeper Branson Morrison despite the offensive efforts.

With the weather taking a harsh turn after halftime, it looked as though the Cardinals might once again pull a rabbit out of their hat.

After struggling to produce any offense early on, coach Dave Levandowski’s team began to turn the tide with time winding down, eventually forcing overtime after testing Maple Grove goalkeeper Sam Cummings on several occasions in the second period.

In that moment, under the cold rain and bright lights, no one was under as much pressure as Foley.

The captain of his team, sitting on another brilliant 21-goal, three-assist campaign, had been unable to give his team a lead despite chances early on.

Frustration, and thinking back to the unfortunate result from a year before, would have been all too easy.

Foley did not succumb to any of those traps, instead he returned to the pitch after 80 minutes of toil with a calm head.

Moments after the opening kick, the senior seized his next chance and ripped a deep shot on net that found its way past Morrison.

That just about sums up everything about the 2019 Post-Journal Boys Soccer Player of the Year.

“He is calm in the face of any difficult situation, which is why he has scored multiple overtime game-winning goals” Maple Grove head coach Cara Abbey said. “Any game he has played in in overtime we have won. In my memory there is only one time we played in overtime when he did not score the goal. Last year, we beat Riverside in the first round because of a goal by Caleb. He can stay focused on the objective, the pressure doesn’t get to him.”

Foley’s offensive prowess in his final year with Maple Grove earned him a second straight Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Athletic Association Central Division Offensive Player of the Year award, as well as a spot on the Boys All-WNY First Team.

Still undecided on his future after high school, Foley will leave with 64 career goals to his name.

The first of those came many years ago when Foley, a freshman, first got his taste of varsity play.

“We were struggling offensively in a huge way,” Abbey said of that season in which she served as an assistant coach. “We just didn’t have guys with that natural sense for scoring goals. We told Caleb we wanted him to come up on varsity. We weren’t necessarily expecting him to be a starter but he played the whole year. Looking back on him as a freshman to Caleb now, he has matured so much. He has become a great leader in the program. Even back as a freshman he had big shoulders and was willing to carry a lot of the pressure.”

Regardless of the situation, Foley proved himself time and time again to be up to the task.

Despite watching his team fall into a four-goal hole in Far West Regional play against Keshequa, the senior never relented in his effort.

With five minutes left to play, Foley added his 23rd and final goal of the year in what many would call “garbage time.”

When asked about his late effort to get Maple Grove on the board, the senior spoke of his desire to present a positive example to his teammates who will return next year.

“The thing that is really special about him, two-time Player of the Year, All Western New York First-Team pick,” Abbey said, “Caleb is the first to say ‘yeah but I couldn’t have done it without all of the people behind me.'”