In 1988, Steinert became the first high school to ever produce state champions in both boys and girls soccer.
In a slight touch of coincidence, the new man trying to lift the Spartans girls’ team back to that level was the ball boy for the boys’ team in ’88.
First-year girls coach Mike “Stinger” Hastings knows all about the school’s soccer tradition and is also acutely aware that 1988 was the last year either soccer program won a state crown. So is his new JV coach, Christie Fink, whose last name is one of the most recognizable in Mercer County soccer circles.
Steinert is turning to its past to propel its future, as it was also in the process of bringing a third legendary name onto the coaching staff at press time, pending approval by the school board.
“It means a lot; it’s everything,” Hastings said of his hiring. “As a player, as a kid, that’s all I wanted to do was play for the Green and White. Back when I was growing up this was a soccer town. That’s what everybody played, that’s what everybody wanted to do and you wanted to be part of that because you were winning state championships all the time.”
“It’s awesome,” Fink said. “It’s great to be back and to see the talent. It’s great being on this field again. Being at the school is unbelievable. It brings back a lot of memories.”
And there are plenty of great recollections when it comes to Steinert soccer.
When Hastings was the ‘88 ball boy, big brother Eric was an all-county midfielder and team captain. The boys won the Group III crown on a Friday night and the girls followed suit Saturday morning at Trenton State College (now The College of New Jersey).
“I remember my brother telling me they had the Senior Semi that Saturday night,” Hastings said. “They came in with the trophy, with their uniforms on, and everybody went nuts.”
Hastings takes over for Aimee Turnbull, who stepped down after 10 successful years. He is a 1994 Steinert graduate who enjoyed an all-state career in soccer and baseball, before starring in baseball at Montclair State.
He returned to Steinert as an English teacher in 1998, and by then Eric was the varsity boys’ coach. Mike assisted him and remained as Todd Jacobs’ assistant until last year. He is also an assistant baseball coach.
Although this is his first foray into coaching girls, Hastings understands their rich past as well. In the late 2000s, the Spartans won two straight sectional titles and came within one win of a state crown and an undefeated season.
“The tradition for the girls’ program is equal to the boys,” Hastings said. “Aimee had her runs with (Jess) Babice and (Arielle) Collins, going 23-1, getting in the state finals, stuff like that. I hope to get it back to those days.”
Fink was an integral part of “those days” as a key defender/midfielder before graduating in 2008. She went on to play Big East soccer for DePaul for one year, but preferred the less intense Division III game and transferred to Rowan. The Profs had three outstanding years, and Fink was named the New Jersey Athletic Conference Midfielder of the Year as a senior.
Aside from making her mark on the Steinert girls’ program, Fink is a direct descendant of the boys’ glory days.
Her father Joe (the current Trenton High assistant) played on the 1975 state championship team and is in the Steinert Athletic Hall of Fame along with his brother Tom. A total of seven Fink brothers played at Steinert from 1971-85, when the Spartans went 254-42-25 with five state titles and six Central Jersey titles. They are in the Mercer County Soccer Hall of Fame as a family.
“I was lucky to have a father and uncles and cousins who all played soccer,” she said. “It was fun, and it’s great to grow up with that, but I’m still myself. I still have to make my own name for myself.”
She started to do that in coaching last year, serving as Lawrence High’s varsity soccer assistant while serving as Nottingham track & field’s pole vault coach.
“It’s gonna be pretty crowded on the sidelines this year between my family and her family,” Hastings said with a laugh. “The Fink name has always been big. You listen to (former Steinert coach) Paul Tessein talk about the Fink brothers and the influence they had on this program. Not only were there a lot of them, they were all pretty damn good.
“It was an easy decision to bring Christie in. I saw she was looking for a job, her name came up a couple of times, and she’s been fantastic. To have someone who played in this program … that tradition means something to her, too. She played college soccer and was very successful.”
Fink has equal praise for Hastings.
“He’s awesome,” she said. “He’s great with the girls, he knows what he’s talking about. He knows the game, and he’s telling them to play it exactly how soccer should be played.
“I think he’s gonna be great for the program, and he’s got big shoes to fill with Turnbull. I think he’s doing a really good job. I’m definitely looking forward to working with him.”
Steinert is coming off an 11-6-3 season that included a disappointing first-round loss to 11th-seeded Hightstown in the state tournament. It was 10-6 two years ago and 8-6-3 in 2011. Those are OK numbers for most teams but slightly off when it comes to Steinert.
Hastings is optimistic he can get the program back to where it was.
“The group I have this year is a building stone,” Hastings said. “I think we’re gonna get there. We might not get there this year, but I can see with the freshmen and sophomores that we have, we could get there.
“We have some really talented kids out there. If they buy into what we’re trying to do on and off the field, I think we can get back to those glory days.”
One of Steinert’s big question marks was in goalie after four-year starter Briyanna Femia graduated, but Courtney Stanley won the battle with an impressive preseason. Kylie Kieffer and Julia DeAngelo will also be counted on.
“Kylie Kieffer has been my mainstay,” Hastings said. “She really helped me out in the summer. I wasn’t approved until late so it really was just her taking the bull by the horns and getting everybody to captains’ practice and stuff like that. Once I was approved, Julia DeAngelo has really helped out a lot, and so has Courtney Stanley.”
It’s a fresh start for one of the most consistently strong programs in Mercer County, and the new coaches hope to move forward by impressing on the girls what was done in the past.
“That’s extremely important,” Fink said. “They need to know the program they’re part of has a great history and they can be part of that, too.
“Steinert girls soccer needs to start winning things again, and I think this is the year that can definitely happen. They’re playing well, they’re a young team, but they have a lot of potential to be good.”
Hastings said the preseason was all about getting his team ready for the campaign, but he plans on instilling some Spartan pride once the season starts.
“We’ll talk about that, I’ll bring them to the gym and show them all the banners,” he said. “You go to other gyms and it’s county and conference titles. You go to our gym, and it’s nothing but state titles, and that’s pretty intimidating.
“You let the girls know that there are people coming to your games that you never met that will probably cheer you on just because they played the same position or were on the team 20, 30 years ago that won championships, and that means something.”
It meant the world to Hastings and Fink. And it still does.
In the world of sports, there is no tradition like a winning tradition.
Steinert High girls’ soccer head coach Mike Hastings directs a practice Aug. 21, 2014. (Photo by Suzette J. Lucas.),
