Centennial soccer sticking together in the face of tragic loss of senior Nick Alincy

Emotions of all kinds poured out of the Centennial boys soccer team at the conclusion of a match on Nov. 8 that they weren't sure was the right thing to do.

One day after the body of Eagle senior Nick Alincy was discovered at Bathtub Beach in Stuart after he was swept away by the current, the Eagles decided the best way to honor their teammate was to be on the pitch together as one.

What transpired was a night that would be the beginning of a long healing process.

With Alincy's No. 4 jerseys with the team on the bench, Centennial scored a 4-0 shutout victory over Jensen Beach fueled by the desire to honor their beloved teammate.

"We can't stay here dwelling on the fact that he's gone, we had to start taking some steps forward," Centennial head coach Doug Black said. "We did. We took some steps forward Wednesday. I saw the guys Monday and Tuesday and they were hurting. Some of them were hurting before the game Wednesday. At the end of the game, that was the first time I saw smiles on their faces in two days. It was a good release for them to get out there and start moving forward."

Alincy was entering his fourth year with the program. Many on the team had grown up with him through elementary school and playing together on the Port St. Lucie Hurricanes Football Club.

News coverage: Teen's body came ashore at Bathtub Beach in Stuart

To those who knew him best, Alincy was the life of the team.

From his propensity to win rap battles on bus rides to how he treated his peers, Alincy's teammates will always remember him with a smile.

"Just an amazing person, that’s the best way to describe him," Eagle senior goalkeeper Jorge Rojas said. "He was the type of player where we knew he had your back and we for sure definitely had his."

"He was never negative," said senior Javier Soto.

"He had such an impact on people, obviously there's friend groups that we may not hang out with as much, but Nick could be friends with any friend group and no one would say a bad thing about Nick," junior Juan Horacio said.

One of Alincy's closest friends on the team was senior Tyler Pielli. As hard as it was to come to grips with one of his best friends having been taken from him, a return to playing the game they loved proved to be therapeutic.

"We didn’t really want to play, but we knew we had to," Pielli said. "At some point, you’re going to have to break the ice. It was just easier to play than to wait and keep grieving."

Returning to the field Wednesday at South County Stadium, Centennial and Jensen Beach formed a circle around the midfield spot with Alincy's jerseys in the middle for a moment of remembrance.

Once the game began, the Eagles took flight knowing Alincy had the best seat in the house.

Playing an opponent who had been trouble in recent years, Centennial held a 2-0 lead at halftime and upon scoring a third goal midway through the second half knew what one more goal would signify.

Senior Fabrizzio Capocci picked up the fourth goal for the Eagles with about 10 minutes to go, and the defense, which Alincy was a part of in front of goal, did the job with Rojas making six saves to hold an even more important clean sheet than normal for his friend.

The game marks the start of difficult days for the team as the season moves on.

Alincy's funeral is Friday, and every match during the season, the team will have their friend front and center in their minds.

On Tuesday, Centennial tied Central 2-2 in Fort Pierce.

For Black, trying to say the right things to his young players, some of whom may be experiencing tragedy for the first time, has been a process that has been supported by the St. Lucie County School District with grief counselors. Black has said they have gone above and beyond their duty to be there for his team.

"They're working through it, they've had a lot of help from our school and our district and I'm very proud as a coach for the help that they've got and the way as a team how they've responded," Black said.

Going into the season, Black was excited about the progress Alincy had made as a player in his role as a defender.

After featuring him sparingly in varsity matches last year, Black said Alincy had made giant strides to be in the mix to earn valuable minutes this season.

Centennial assistant coach Armando Soto has known Alincy since he moved to the area as a young boy from Fort Lauderdale. Coaching him as part of the Port St. Lucie Hurricanes program, Soto also had Alincy as a student in biology.

Soto's fondest memories of Alincy were away from the field from eating entire chickens on bus rides to games to on the bench hearing Alincy's booming voice supporting his teammates on the field.

"He was a great kid," Soto said. "My son recently showed me a picture of a game where he didn't start, he didn't even play and the picture is just him just cheering us on. That's the type of kid he was."

Tears will surely flow over the course of the season, but the thought of rallying to perform at a high level will be organic.

Finding comfort knowing that Alincy will always be there in spirit for every team activity, from practices to games to team gatherings, is how the Eagles can continue pushing forward every day.

"The big thing is, we're definitely going to play the rest of the season not only for Nick but with Nick as well," Rojas said.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Centennial boys soccer finds peace on the pitch after teammate's death