Five to be honored by Southeast Conn. Soccer Hall of Fame
New London — The Southeast Connecticut Soccer Hall of Fame will induct five Friday at the Coast Guard Academy’s Merle Smith Consolidated Club (former Officers’ Club).
Honorees are Coast Guard men’s soccer coach Chris Parsons, former Waterford High School great Katie Schoepfer, Valley Regional boys’ soccer coach Mick Fearon and former Eastern Connecticut Conference boys’ soccer coaches Colin Delaney (Montville) and Paul deCastro (Stonington), who combined for three state championships.
Parsons, an all-state player and state champion at Farmington High School, began coaching at Coast Guard in 2002 following head coaching stints at Champlain College and Vassar College, accumulating more than 260 career victories. He has led the Bears into the postseason 14 times, including a 2014 NCAA Division III tournament berth.
Schoepfer graduated from Waterford in 2006 with the state record for goals in a career with 157. She was an all-state and All-New England selection all four years and went on to play at Penn State — leading the Nittany Lions to four consecutive Big 10 championships — and professionally for Sky Blue FC and the Boston Breakers of the National Women’s Soccer League. Late last year, Schoepfer was named head coach of the U.S. girls’ national U15 team.
Fearon, who has coached Valley from 2002 to the present, is a four-time Shoreline Conference Coach of the Year and was the Connecticut Small School Coach of the Year in 2010. Under Fearon, Valley has won three Shoreline titles.
Delaney and deCastro faced each other on many occasions as ECC opponents.
Delaney, a graduate of East Lyme High School and the University of Delaware, coached at Montville from 2004-18 and won four ECC divisional titles, the 2012 ECC tournament title and the 2010 state championship. Delaney coached 14 all-state players, five All-New England picks and three All-Americans.
A Stonington graduate himself and a member of the high school’s athletic hall of fame, deCastro coached at his alma mater for 14 seasons, compiling a 154-86-12 record. He retired following back-to-back Class M championships in 2019 and 2021.
The Hall of Fame dinner will feature a reception at 5 p.m. and dinner at 6. Tickets are $60 and may be purchased online at https://app.fluidpay.com/checkout/6b5831d8-8b55-4045-94cd-0169653ac812
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