After having his team ravaged by graduation following its championship campaign in the fall of 2014, Pinkerton Academy’s longtime boys’ varsity soccer coach Kerry Boles knew that his 2015 PA contingent would have its work cut out for it this autumn.
But Boles and his boys made the best of a challenging situation, managing a record that was comfortably over the .500 mark (8-6-2) and getting into the Division I tournament.
The 11th-seeded Astro guys didn’t go as far in the tourney as they would have liked – getting eliminated by number six Salem in the first round – but Boles’ bunch garnered the respect of many folks in the tough league during the hard-fought campaign. And three of the contingent’s standouts ended up collecting all-state recognition from the D-I coaches after the tourney.
Versatile senior captain Colin Coutts – who saw time at both forward and midfielder during the campaign – was named a First-Team All-Stater, and more than deserved it in the eyes of his coach.
“Colin has been such a leader for us over the past few years. He has been instrumental in our success, on and off the field,” said Boles. “For a team that didn’t score many goals (43), Colin had 19 assists, and that’s astounding to me.”
Also earning first-team honors was senior captain and defender Stuart Graves.
“Stuart is another excellent leader, and he anchored our defensive troops all year,” said Boles. “He’s our best and smartest defender, and it showed all season long. He was third in all-state voting among D-I defenders. That’s saying something for a team that was ranked 11th.”
Along with their all-state honors, Coutts and Graves will represent New Hampshire in the annual Lions’ Cup match against a squad of Vermont senior all-stars next July.
And claiming All-State Honorable Mention recognition was versatile PA sophomore Cole Perry, who like Coutts saw time at both forward and middie for the Pinkerton booters this fall.
“Cole is a true talent, has excellent skills, and has a tremendous work ethic,” said Boles. “When you combine those three traits, you have a great soccer player, and that’s what Cole is. He had the most goals on our team this year, but contributed in so many other ways all season long.”
The Astro males had distinct ups and downs during the 2015 season but finished off the regular campaign with an impressive run of five wins in their last six games to end up at a very solid 8-6-2.
