Haverford School’s Antony Costa is Main Line Boys Athlete of the Week (Dec. 2-8)

By Bruce Adams for Mainline Media News

The junior forward, the Inter-Ac’s Most Valuable Player in boys soccer this fall, scored 11 goals and dished out five assists for the Fords (13-3-4 overall, 8-1-1 Inter-Ac), who won the league title for the third year in a row. Haverford School boys soccer head coach Keith Cappo said, “Anthony has been a leader all year, supporting his teammates on and off the field and leading through his example. While he can take over a game and create opportunities on his own, his greatest strength is bringing out the best in those around him.” A fine all-around athlete, Costa plays lacrosse for the Fords in the spring.

Q: What did it mean to you to be named the Inter-Ac’s Most Valuable Player?

A: Winning the Inter-Ac’s Most Valuable Player was a sense of relief. From the beginning of the season, I set that achievement as my (individual) goal, and honestly, it is just a sign of how hard my team and I worked. It felt great for my impact in the Inter-Ac to be recognized since last year I felt that I deserved a spot on the all-league teams but I didn’t get one. My goal this year was to show them I deserved a spot and that I could do it without all the (previous) seniors.

Q: What aspect of your game did you work on most this season?

A: This season, I worked a lot on my footwork and awareness of my position on the field. Once a week, on Wednesday mornings, I would meet with one of the assistant coaches, Homero (Rodriguez), for around an hour before school to work on my footwork and improve my ability to see the field.

Q: What do you think was the biggest key to Haverford’s success this fall?

A: I believe the biggest key to our success this season was our discipline and willingness to win. Losing 18 seniors was a huge thing to overcome. We were very young and needed a lot of underclassmen to step up. The captains — Nic Nekoumand, Luca Aloi and I — met with our coach multiple times a week to discuss ways to get us back on track after the beginning of the season wasn’t going our way. We also needed to tune out all the noise of the past years doubting us and thinking we didn’t have a shot. I have never seen a team want it more than us; we have had multiple games down one or two goals, or tied, at halftime, and when we come together in our corner, everyone knows we are just a goal away from getting back in the game.

Q: What do you think was the biggest key for your offensive proficiency this fall?

A: The biggest key to my offensive proficiency this year was my competitiveness and my ability to trust my teammates. When that ball was in our attacking half, I was able to see the field better than anyone else. When there was a 50-50 ball, my mindset was it had to be mine. I started the year slowly because I was trying to do everything myself. But then I realized our best offense came when we moved the ball as a team, and not one person was trying to do it all themselves.

Q: You wear uniform jersey No. 10 for Haverford School soccer – is there a reason you chose that number, does it have any significance to you?

A: I chose to wear No. 10 for two main reasons this year first because that number is usually the leader of the team, I realized this year I needed to step up as one of the few upperclassmen and players left from our team last year. The second reason was because I am on the lacrosse team and there is a special person every year who plays lacrosse and football who wears 10 in honor of Kip Taviano. I realized I might not get the honor in wearing that jersey because I don’t play football so I wanted to honor him in another way and wear that number for soccer.

Q: What sparked your original interest in soccer? Have you always been a forward?

A: I was put into soccer at a really young age, I have been playing since I was five years old. My original interest sparked from watching it on TV and just playing in camps with my friends. I haven’t always been a forward, during my club years I played the wingback or winger position. I have always had speed so my coaches used that when letting me taking people on down the line. This year I talked with Coach about our offensive weapons since last year I played mostly winger, and we both agreed I was going to have to step it up a lot since we had a lot of young kids coming up from the JV.

Q: Briefly describe your club soccer career outside of Haverford School.  What has been your favorite memory of your club soccer career?

A: My favorite memory of club soccer was having won two state cups with VSA at the EDP level. I played at HEX for a year and went to the ENCL playoffs. Finally, I played for Sporting MLS for a year.

Q: Who have been your biggest soccer mentors, and what was the most important thing you learned from each of them?

A: My two biggest soccer mentors have probably been Coach Cappo and Samir Badr. Throughout my three varsity seasons at Haverford, Coach Cappo and I have been through pretty much everything. He’s taught me numerous tips to help me improve my game, and outside of soccer he has guided me through school. In moments I was down, Coach Cappo would lift me up. For example, this year heading into the Inter-Ac I had little to no confidence coming off a game where we tied, and I had a goal but I missed a PK late in the game or missed a game-winning chance. Coach has taught me that it is not always the result we get but the learning experience from that result, and if you don’t love the result you got to get back to work the next day. Samir Badr has been my friend and private trainer for about five years now, without him I don’t think my skills would be anywhere there at today. He has helped me get ready for pre-season throughout my entire high school career, helped keep me in shape, and helped me with my shot. Finally, if I ever need help breaking film down he would be the person I would go to because he has helped me see things no one else could have.

Q: Tell us a little about your pre-game preparation on the day of a game.

A: My preparation for a game starts the night before where I try to hydrate and consume as much water as possible, while watching film and see the opposing team's weaknesses. I try to get around 10 hours of sleep waking up at 7:30 a.m. to get ready for school. I like to get two big meals in before the game, breakfast and then lunch about three hours before game time. During my free time during the day I like to watch some more film and right before the warm ups I usually eat a Rice Krispy treat or get some sugar in to feel alert.

Q: What is your favorite academic course at Haverford School? What do you plan to major in at college? Is there a particular career field that interests you at the present time?

A: My favorite course at Haverford is probably my honors Woodworking class because I love building things and seeing how my ideas shift while making my product. I think looking in the future I might want to go into Pre-Med and follow my father – he is an orthodontist.

Fun facts – Anthony Costa

Favorite TV show: Suits.

Favorite movie: 21 Jump Street.

Favorite pre-game pump-up song: "Bandit" – Don Toliver.

Favorite team: Philadelphia Eagles.

Favorite place to visit: Nantucket.

Family members: parents Anthony and Cole, sisters Colby, Caden and Carson.

(To be selected as Main Line Boys Athlete of the Week, a student-athlete must first be nominated by his coach.)

Originally Published: December 2, 2024 at 9:49 AM EST