Peter Masotto at the 1988 U.S. Soccer’s 75th anniversary in Philadelphia in 1988. (Michael Lewis/FrontRowSoccer.com)

By Michael Lewis

FrontRowSoccer.com Editor

Peter Masotto, who served as Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association president for 23 years, has passed away.

He was 78.

Masotto, who held many positions during a soccer career that spanned nearly 40 years, made an impact on and off thefield.

As a coach, Massoto is best known for guiding the Massapequa Falcons to the 1986 Girls Under-19 national championship and to the 1987 final. The Falcons won eight State Cup crowns and three Region I titles. Masotto coached several girls’ teams to 18 state titles. He directed the Northport Elite into the 1994 national final. His teams competed in the Long Island Junior Soccer League.

Masotto also was U.S. Youth Soccer women’s coach of the year in 1984 and 1997.

He began his soccer journey by bringing oranges before to the games of his daughters, Annmarie and Patricia before taking on coaching responsibilities, earning a B coaching license and moving up the ladder.

“I started coaching because of my two girls, Annmarie and Patricia,” Masotto told ENYSoccer.com in 2013. “I did it for the love of the game and not for any recognition.”

Masotto is a member of several soccer Halls of Fame, including the ENY Soccer Hall of fame (1998), LIJSL (1999), East Hudson Youth Soccer League (2004) and Region I. He also was named a Life Member of Eastern New York and U.S. Soccer.

“I cannot believe all the ceremonies and honors I have received for my volunteering as a coach and administrator,” he said in 2013.

He served as an ENYYSA board member for 27 years, overseeing the growth of the association to more than 125,000 participants.

Masotto also held numerous leadership positions at the state level, serving for several years as a Region I girls staff coach.

He also was a long-time member of the Region I and National Appeals Boards, a candidate for national office and US Soccer’s ambassador to the U.S. women’s national team matches in Australia in which he served as head of the U.S. delegation.

“Peter always put the kids first in everything he did and that shines through in his legacy. I am very happy to see him being inducted into the Region 1 Hall of Fame,” ENYYSA president Richard Christiano said in 2013.

Masotto’s daughter, Patricia Louise, and her best friend, Brenda Driscoll, died in a car accident in Farmingdale, N.Y. in 1985. Patricia Louise was 21, Driscoll 20. The ENYYSA U-16 Girls State Cup was named after Patricia Louise, as well as the U.S. Youth Soccer competition in the same agreement. ENYSoccer also named a girls scholarship in her memory.

On many occasions, Masotto would address the winners of the state and national competitions, talking about his daughter.

“She displayed a remarkable drive for everything she undertook in her life,” he said in 2005. “Soccer was a small part of what this remarkable young woman was.”

Funeral details and visiting hours were unavailable as of Sunday afternoon.

Here is a related story:

OFFSIDE REMARKS: A father remembers a loving daughter (2005)

Front Row Soccer editor Michael Lewis has covered 13 World Cups (eight men, five women), seven Olympics and 25 MLS Cups. He has written about New York City FC, New York Cosmos, the New York Red Bulls and both U.S. national teams for Newsday and has penned a soccer history column for the Guardian.com. Lewis, who has been honored by the Press Club of Long Island and National Soccer Coaches Association of America, is the former editor of BigAppleSoccer.com. He has written seven books about the beautiful game and has published ALIVE AND KICKING The incredible but true story of the Rochester Lancers. It is available at Amazon.com.