BELCHERTOWN – Hunter LePage’s highlight reel opens with two goals in the first 20 seconds: his first-timer off a rebound that won the 2019 Western Massachusetts championship and a tap-in from a corner kick this fall.
A standard start for a showcase of skills but not exactly representative of the type of player Belchertown’s senior center back is. The remaining six and a half minutes are almost boring by comparison. It’s all proper decisions, effective clearances and thoughtful distribution to begin the offense. There’s no dramatic chase down tackles or acrobatic thwarting of attacks at the last moment.
Those would mean he was out of position in the first place.
“There’s no particular moment for him that sticks out because he does everything the right way,” Belchertown coach Zach Siano said. “It’s a series of moments over and over and over again just watching him be that silent assassin out there on the defensive line and shut down some of the best scorers in the region. For a team that ended up having 15 shutouts on the year and allowed half a goal a game is something incredible, and Hunter is certainly the linchpin behind that.”
LePage, the 2021 Gazette Boys Soccer Player of the Year, finished with three goals and one assist while orchestrating one of the state’s best defenses. Belchertown didn’t allow a goal in the state tournament until the final, where it fell to Norwell in penalties. He was named All-State and All-New England by the United Soccer Coaches.
He makes the right play look easy when oftentimes that’s not the case and requires a deep understanding of the game, his team’s style and where the ball needs to be.
“It’s certainly hard. It comes with a lot of field vision and a lot of anticipation and having a firm gasp and understanding of the game and how we think that teams are going to move and shift and what they’re going to throw at us,” Siano said. “He knows what their best attributes are and how to take that away. It allows him to swallow up teams.”
That awareness comes from playing the same position for most of his life. LePage never wanted to be up front scoring all the goals.
“I love playing it,” he said. “I get to control the whole back line and I get to see everything throughout the whole game. Honestly a great position to be in.”
Belchertown’s senior class has played together since they were young both for school teams in town and club teams during the spring and summer months. Joey Bianco has been along for the ride to see LePage grow into a silencer in the defensive third.
“He’s just smart on the ball and he doesn’t make decisions like most defenders do,” Bianco said. “He’s great physically, he can really play. I think his ability to lock down an attack and stuff make him the best back I’ve seen in a long time.”
LePage was a member of three Western Mass. championship teams and won a state title as a sophomore. He’ll continue his career next season at Assumption with Bianco.
“Definitely incredibly what we got to achieve,” LePage said. “I couldn’t be any more happy with what I’ve done.”
Boys Soccer All-StarsFirst teamJames Aas, senior, PVCICS
Joey Bianco, senior, Belchertown
Ryan Belina, junior, Smith Academy
Akira Bix, senior, Amherst
Liam Brown, senior, Granby
Andrew Ciaglo, senior, Hopkins Academy
Francisco Climent, senior, Granby
Preston Coffey, senior, Gateway
Aengus Cox, senior, Amherst
Carter Daughdrill, senior, Easthampton
Race Drobiak, senior, Smith Vocational
Tyler Dubreuil, senior, Frontier
AJ Dybacki, senior, Hampshire
Tyler Evans, senior, South Hadley
Grady Fern, senior, Hampshire
Patrick Fitzgibbons, sophomore, Hopkins Academy
Logan Graves, junior, Smith Academy
Carter Hebert, senior, Easthampton
Jack Holt, junior, Belchertown
Riley Intrator, junior, Smith Academy
Hunter LePage, senior, Belchertown
Devin Niles, sophomore, Frontier
Dominic Mancuso, senior, Belchertown
Aidan Miklasiewicz, sophomore, Hampshire
Brady McDonald, senior, Northampton
Shay O'Neill, senior, Belchertown
Rosco Palmer, sophomore, Smith Vocational
John Senn-McNally, junior, Northampton
Payton Sladeski, senior, Frontier
Gabe Zellin, senior, Easthampton
Second teamCharlie Anischik, junior, South Hadley
Matt Bacis, junior, Easthampton
Cairn Bright, senior, Frontier
Max Brown, senior, Granby
Brady Burch, junior, Frontier
Alex Caldonaro, senior, Northampton
Jacob Chaisson, senior, Belchertown
Gordie Cook, senior, Hopkins Academy
Will Dobson, senior, Smith Academy
Jimmy Galvin, senior, Northampton
Daniel Gauvin, junior, Granby
Josh Gingras, junior, Smith Academy
Kaden Houle, junior, Belchertown
Wyatt Jeffress, senior, Smith Academy
Elan Kuntz, senior, Hampshire
Josef Kurkolonis, junior, Smith Vocational
Grayson Marques, senior, Belchertown
Ethan Marowitz, junior, Easthampton
Dylan Martin, senior, Frontier
Owen Miller, eighth grade, Hampshire
Ryan Morin, senior, Gateway
Finn Norsen, sophomore, Northampton
Nate Oldenburg, junior, Belchertown
Jamie Park, junior, Amherst
Colin Quinn, junior, South Hadley
Landon Richard, senior, Gateway
Teddy Scott, freshman, PVCICS
Javier Simms, junior, Easthampton
Abram Speek, senior, PVCICS
Shire Thompson, senior, Amherst
Cameron Zononi, junior, Smith Academy
Honorable mentionNick Adzima, senior, Belchertown
Ayden Audet, junior, Gateway
Owen Babb, freshman, Frontier
Seth Boissenault, senior, Smith Vocational
Carson Boscher, senior, Belchertown
Teddy Cyr, eighth grade, Hopkins Academy
Gavin Gilburg, senior, PVCICS
Roger Grondin, senior, Smith Academy
Patrick Gubala, senior, Holyoke
Nick Jacob, senior, Smith Vocational
Robert L’Abbee, junior, Granby
Brady Mendoza, senior, South Hadley
Mateo Navarro, junior, Easthampton
Freddy Orozco Rivas, senior, Holyoke
Charlie Por, junior, Hampshire
Owen Przybyla, junior, Gateway
Fernando Saravia, junior, Frontier
Chanhee Son, sophomore, Frontier
Connor Stiles, junior, Northampton
Thomas Vinagre, senior, Belchertown
Carter White, junior, Granby