Fabiana Rebecca and Christina Viaggio have played soccer together since they were in kindergarten. They first took the field along side each otehr in CYO at Our Lady of Hope parish, then their Gottschee club team and at Christ the King. Their dream was to continue that for four more years.
“We originally wanted to play together [again],” Viaggio said.
That, however, was not meant to be as their majors and career aspirations took them on separate paths. It was a bittersweet day for the pair as they signed National Letters of Intent Thursday at CK. Rebecca will be headed to Pace and Viaggio NYIT. Both were happy for each other, but realized it was the end of something special.
Thomas Bricker
Christ the King's Christina Viaggio is headed to NYIT next season.
William Thomas
Christ The King's Fabiana Rebecca signed a NLI with Pace.
“Signing was really emotional because it was our last time being together,” Rebecca said.
They can thank each other for some of their success. They would often train together in the summer at Juniper Valley Park and go running on the beach. The duo were a major part of the Royals growth as a program, culminating with its first ever CHSAA Brooklyn/Queens title this past fall. Rebecca scored the equalizer with less than 10 minutes left to play in regulation and Viaggio assisted on the winner in the first overtime of a 2-1 win over Mary Louis in the title game.
“I think it’s an ideal situation for them,” Royals coach John Fayad said. “They get to play and I think they will continue to do what they do.”
He remembered Viaggio coming in as skinny freshman. He was at first worried her safety going against older players until she started showing her skill with the ball. By the time her breakout senior year rolled around she was often the best player on the field. An All-City first team selection by The Post, Viaggio scored 23 goals and dished out 10 assists. She fell in love with NYIT’s special nursing program and the feeling around the soccer team. She picked the Long Island school and a partial athletic/academic scholarship over Aldephi and Molloy. NYIT was 7-10 overall and 7-2 in the ECC under coach Mike Caputo.
“Every year you could see her getting better,” Fayad said. “This year she excelled at every part of her game.”
Rebecca, an All-City Honorable Mention selection by the Post, said Pace was her top choice. Coach Mike Winn, who founded the program in 1999, is looking to rebound after the club went 8-9-1 overall and 7-6-1 in the Northeast-10. She picked them over a host of Division III schools and Division I Quinnipiac, where she would have been a walk-on. Rebecca, who earned a partial athletic scholarship, was looking for a place where she had a chance to play and enjoyed the family atmosphere. She scored 16 goals last season.
“Seeing the team [together] made me feel like I was doing King all over again,” she said.
She and Viaggio wouldn’t change anything about their time together. While there was disappointment at first of it coming to a close, their bond and what they accomplished together will never change.
“I’m extremely happy, because she gets to go where she wants to go and I get to go where I want to go,” Viaggio said. “We will always be friends. We will always play soccer together.”
jstaszewski@nypost.com
Christina Viaggio, Fabiana Rebecca, NYIT, Christ the King, Viaggio, Rebecca
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