Fucito Sparks New Crimson Attack

On the offense of the Harvard men’s soccer team, specific players have become known for certain styles of play.

Sophomore Charles Altchek uses his height to collect balls from the air. Classmate Matt Hoff has the dribbling skills to beat almost any defender. Junior Anthony Tornaritis employs craft to get around opponents in his way.

And newcomer Michael Fucito is just plain fast.

“He’s got that breakaway speed, so he makes defenses play him honestly,” coach John Kerr said. “They can’t get too tight on him because he’ll blow past them. [He gives us] a number of weapons up there which is quite nice.”

After the arrival of Altchek and Hoff last year, the Crimson offense was filled with a smorgasbord of young talent. Fucito’s arrival this season adds yet another weapon to the Harvard team.

But despite a set of quick, mongoose-like reflexes, teammates note that he has not quite acclimated himself to the rhythm of the college level of play.

“I’d say [his style is] more hectic,” said junior midfielder Brian Charnock, who was one of the starting forwards last season. “He’s not calm and controlled. He’s very quick, and moves around a lot. But he doesn’t use as much finesse as maybe some of the other guys on our team.”

Fucito is from nearby Westford, Mass. and played his high school soccer for The Brooks School.

Additionally, Fucito plays with the FC Greater Boston Bolts—a highly competitive under 18 select team with whom he will continue to work out until the end of this year. For incoming Ivy League players, this previous level of play is the norm.

At Harvard, Fucito was moved to a starting role following Altchek’s injury on Sept. 19 against UMass. Prior to the loss of Altchek, Fucito had mainly been utilized as a midfield substitute.

“I’ve never had a set position,” Fucito said. “It depends on game-to-game and how the flow of one particular game is.”

But with Altchek likely returning to the lineup on Saturday against Yale, Fucito will most likely be seeing playing time at both positions. Kerr has said that Fucito’s place on the field will likely depend on Altchek’s strength.

“I think he’s got a lot more to offer than what he’s been showing,” Charnock said. “But it’s kind of tough to just step in and start playing. He’s got great skills. I think he’s a little uncomfortable right now, and I think he’ll settle in as the season progresses.”

To Fucito, improvement will come by listening to his coaches and teammates and by focusing on developing his skills.

“There are just a lot of little things to work on,” Fucito said. “I’ve been trying to listen to the coaches—movement, spacing and which runs to make play an important part in the game.”

Against Hartford on Sept. 17, Fucito registered the first and only goal of his collegiate career in a 4-2 Crimson victory.

The goal came after Fucito intercepted a pass from the goalie around the midline. Once he had the ball, Fucito took it in and put his shot under the Hartford keeper for the score.

“I know he’s only scored one goal, but he’s creating havoc in the opponents’ defense which creates opportunities for Matt Hoff and Tony Tornaritis,” Kerr said. “So it gives us a kind of a feeling when the other team has to worry about him because he’s so fast.”

Fucito recognizes where his own strengths lie and how his speed can help him on the field by creating scoring chances for teammates.

“I’ve been playing forward, so I should be scoring,” Fucito said. “I’m smaller, but I tend to use my speed by making runs into the corner or doing a lot of passing and cutting for the ball.”

While this season is still young—Harvard still has yet to play a game within the Ivy League—Fucito still has a lot of time left in the season to begin to fulfill the immense potential his coaches see in him.

“He’s still trying to find the speed of play at the collegiate level,” Kerr said. “The good news from my perspective is that he’s going to get a lot better, and he’s going to move up rather quickly. We haven’t seen the best of him.”

And with the start of the Ivy season just around the corner, that peak performance can’t come soon enough.

—Staff writer Gabriel M. Velez can be reached at gmvelez@fas.harvard.edu.