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Monday, September 1, 2008
The Well Runs Deep
Central Indiana, IN
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By: Rob Downey
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Photo(s) By: Natalie Evans
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For the Martinsville boys’ soccer program, a pair of brothers head the effort to duplicate the success that the Artesians enjoyed during the 2007 high school season.
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“Both of them are competitors, and they have been a joy to coach. They are both capable of playing at the next level,” said Daniel Urban, Martinsville boys soccer coach.
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Senior Anthony Spina and his brother, junior Michael Spina, are two of the key returning players for Martinsville this fall, as the Artesians attempt to repeat as both sectional and regional champions.
The Spina brothers have been playing soccer since they were youngsters; first in a recreational program affiliated with the local YMCA that their mother Darla, along with sister Linda Johnson and friend Paula Clow, helped get started, and then later as members of a travel soccer club that other soccer supporters within the community formed for the more serious soccer players in Martinsville.
Soon after, the Spina brothers joined the highly successful Bloomington Cutters travel soccer program, where they honed their skills by playing regularly in tournaments throughout the Midwest prior to entering high school.
Now, coming on the heels of consecutive 14-win seasons and the aforementioned sectional and regional titles that were achieved in 2007, the brothers and their Martinsville teammates are hungry for more as they continue to strive to elevate the Artesians’ soccer program amongst some of the better known teams in the state.
Anthony will be entering his third season as a full-time starter, although he spent some time in the starting lineup as a freshman as well.
“Anthony has so much natural ability,” indicated Martinsville boys soccer coach Daniel Urban. “He makes it look so easy.”
Meanwhile, Michael will be a starter for the Artesians for the third consecutive season. “(Michael) is an all-around player who possesses an excellent knowledge of the game,” explained Urban of the younger Spina’s skills.
A third Spina, eldest brother Nick, graduated from the standout 2007 team, where he was a key performer for the Martinsville squad that defeated Mooresville for the sectional crown and Ben Davis for the regional title, before falling to perennial powerhouse North Central at semistate last season.
Clearly, a love for soccer exists in the Spina family, where the boys’ father, Greg, frequently took the boys to observe the nearby highly regarded Indiana University mens’ soccer teams of recent years.
Anthony and Michael were also both talented baseball and basketball players during their grade school and middle school days, and Anthony continues to play basketball for the Martinsville boys team during the winter as the team’s starting point guard.
However, it is soccer that has always been the first love for both Spinas and according to Urban, they are integral parts of the success that the Artesians have enjoyed for the past few years.
“Both of them are competitors, and they have been a joy to coach. They are both capable of playing at the next level,” said Urban.
For Anthony, his biggest thrill thus far as a high school soccer player came when he scored on a penalty kick for the Artesians in their thrilling overtime regional championship win over Ben Davis. Anthony has a knack for being to able to visualize things developing on the pitch before they actually happen, which has enabled him to become one of the top scoring threats in the state this fall.
As for Michael, his biggest soccer delight came in the Artesians’ semistate loss to North Central, when he registered the lone Martinsville goal, appropriately enough on an assist from brother Anthony. Michael’s footwork and his finesse on the soccer field also make him a dangerous scoring threat.
Both Spina brothers would like to help the Artesians repeat as regional champs and to advance further in the state tournament this fall. Anthony says that he has no personal goals heading into this, his final season as a high school soccer player, but Michael jokingly said that he “wants to outscore” his older sibling this season.
Anthony and Michael both indicated that having someone familiar as a teammate is a huge advantage, as is the fact that their skills complement one another on the playing field.
“We have played together for so long, we know where each other will be on the field,” said Michael. Anthony says it’s a bond built because “we trust each other’s ability.”
Anthony’s favorite professional soccer player is Brazil’s Kaka, while Michael prefers Portugese soccer standout Christiano Ronaldo. Like both of their soccer heroes, Anthony and Michael Spina command a lot of attention from the opposition when they step onto the field to represent Martinsville.
Throughout a nearly lifelong pursuit of soccer excellence, brothers Anthony and Michael Spina have helped the Martinsville boys’ soccer program develop into a respectable program within Central Indiana and beyond – a trend the two brothers hope to continue as they do battle for the Artesians on the pitch this fall. •
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