High-scoring Apodiakos leads Belle Vernon boys into WPIAL playoffs

By: HSSN Staff
Tuesday, October 17, 2017 | 4:30 PM

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As the regular season ends and the WPIAL boys soccer playoffs get ready to commence, the field of contenders have narrowed.

In Class AAA, four section champions will look to showcase their dominance and find their way to Highmark Stadium for the WPIAL championship.

But, Belle Vernon is hoping the section winners are not the only contenders to look out for.

In Section 3, Ringgold earned the regular season title, but the runner-up Leopards want to be the dark horse of the playoffs.

A year after winning the section title, Belle Vernon returns to the playoffs after finishing 13-4-1 overall and 7-2-1 in the section.

“I thought overall the season was pretty good,” first-year coach Rob Miele said. “Obviously, the loss to Ringgold at home in overtime was something we struggled to get through. As a team, we faced some adversity with injuries.”

One of those injuries was to goalkeeper Jake Sepesky, who was injured in the first section game of the season.

The Leopards showed no ill-effects toward the injury, as they rattled off eight consecutive shutouts — seven wins — after the injury.

Offensively, Belle Vernon has been led by junior forward junior forward Markello Apodiakos.

It was a historic season for Apodiakos, who now holds the school record for most goals in a single season and most points in a single season.

“Markel is a player that is very gifted,” Miele said. “He works very hard. He is probably one of the best players I have ever coached. He is also the most humbled. He will help anybody.”

It was meaningful to see Apodiakos get the goals record for Miele, because it was the coach's record he broke. Apodiakos scored his 32nd goal of the season in a 2-1 defeat against Canon-McMillan, breaking Miele's record of 31 set in 2005.

“It was a great accomplishment,” Apodiakos said. “I worked hard in the offseason because I thought this was a great year for this to happen. It was a special moment to me.”

Apodiakos' historic season wasn't over yet. In the final game of the regular season, he broke the school record for most points in a career with 79.

The record-breaking point was a goal in a 5-1 win at Southmoreland on Monday.

“It means a lot to me because no one can say they can get that many points in school history,” Apodiakos said. “It means a lot because it is goals and assists.”

Apodiakos and company will look to keep it going, as they look to win their first playoff win since 2012, when they defeated South Fayette in the Class AA consolation game.

“If we can stay healthy and play the right way, I think this team can play with anybody,” Miele said. “We need to shore up some things heading into the playoffs.”

The WPIAL playoff pairings will be announced Wednesday and opening-round games are expected to begin Saturday.

Drew Karpen is a freelance writer.

Tags: Belle Vernon