YOUNGSTOWN — When Marc Niccola got the job as the head coach of the Lewiston-Porter boys soccer team, he made a life-altering decision.
He did not just accept the job and keep working his day job as usual.
Instead, after owning the Main Street Pizzeria in Youngstown for 25 years, Niccola and his business partner decided to sell the business. Niccola did not want to have the distraction of running a business and trying to win a state title with the Lancers.
“For the time being, I’m just focused on this,” Niccola said. “I figure if you give something 100% and you put your heart into it and focus on it, good things will happen. That’s how my pizzeria worked and that’s what I’m going to do here. They got my full attention, 100% of the time. This is what I’m dedicated to for the next three months.”
Marc Niccola was officially hired as the varsity boys soccer head coach at the March 23, Lewiston-Porter Central School District board meeting. Niccola has been hired to replace former head coach Rick Sweeney, who won four Section VI championships in 11 seasons.
As a former Lew-Port player himself, the decision to take the position was easy for Niccola. He jumped at the opportunity to coach at his alma mater.
“I love Lew-Port,” Niccola said. “I love watching my kids play, all the kids I coached. I was an alumni that played here. I was a Niagara Pioneer kid and all these kids have done that. I love being here … So I’m really not nervous, I’m comfortable with it and we’re ready to roll. We got Nichols Wednesday and we’ll see what happens. … I feel at home here, feel like I’m the right choice.”
Niccola is taking over a program that went 18-1 last season making it all the way to the Section VI Class A2 title game where it lost 3-0. As he tries to make the team his own, Niccola is hoping to build a family atmosphere within the program and get everybody to buy into the mission of the team.
Heading into this season, the Lancers have 29 players on the roster including 15 seniors. One of those 15 seniors is Luke Leardini who is heading into this season after a junior season in which he scored 45 goals and added 17 assists.
While this is the first time that Leardini has been coached by Niccola, it is not the first time they have spent a lot of time together. The two families are friendly and as a result Leardini has grown up with Niccola.
As far as how the practices are going so far and how different they are under Niccola as compared to Sweeney, Leardini said there is not very much difference.
“Talking in the locker room and making everyone as a team,” Leardini said about what Niccola does well as a coach. “I feel like we’ve been doing more stuff as a team … We (are) coming early like an hour before practice and chilling. It’s just, it’s more of a team this year. Not that the other years there weren’t but it was more of a team for sure.”
Niccola previously served in various coaching roles in the area including with the Niagara Pioneer organization. His connections to the Pioneer organization go beyond just coaching them as he has brought on the organization’s president Ryan Suitor as an assistant coach alongside returning assistant Andy Learidini and assistant coach Brian Scully.
He also has previously coached at Lewiston-Porter High School serving as the boys modified head coach from 2016-18 and an assistant on the junior varsity girls team from 2013-15.
As a business owner and a coach, Niccola has learned the importance of delegating and asking for help when he needs it. He will be doing just that with his three assistant coaches this season.
He also spent time around the program when his son Jake and daughter Jordan both played for the Lancer soccer teams. During his time watching his kids play at SUNY Fredonia, he has learned different parts of coaching the sport that he will be implementing this season at Lew-Port.
Through the early part of training camp, Niccola has seen his team display a tremendous amount of selflessness evidenced by the fact that some of his seniors have made room in the lineup for younger players to help better the team.
Since he was hired as the new head coach, Niccola has had a busy summer getting to know his players and how to fit the group together.
“It’s been pretty smooth,” Niccola said. “I spent the summer just going and watching them … All these boys play on two Niagara Pioneer teams in the summer. So I spent the summer just watching them, getting to know them, getting to know their names. So that way when we started they were comfortable with me.”
Lewiston-Porter opens its season at 7 p.m. Sept. 2 when it hosts Nichols. Heading into the season, Niccola’s expectations are to win the program’s 17th Section VI title.
“They’re focused and as long as we’re playing our best soccer in late October, we should have a chance to meet our goals,” Niccola said.