Marc Sotile, son of Joe and Monika Sotile, grew up in Greece in the Paddy Hill area. He was the only boy in the family with three older sisters. When Marc was a little boy, his dad encouraged him to put down his sister’s Barbie dolls to go outside and play with the neighbors who were playing soccer in the front yard. The Kompaniec family, originally from Brazil, were like Marc’s second family and the first to expose Marc to soccer. Marc’s dad Joe recognized his son’s interest and natural abilities in soccer and encouraged him to play in the Greece Recreation Soccer League. By the time Marc was eight he moved up to an All Star team that went on to win several tournaments both locally and in Canada. It was the first team in history to win all ten games in this division.
At a young age Marc’s soccer talent began emerging as a defenseman. He went on to play on the newly formed Greece Lightning and played on this team until he was 15. In middle school Marc knew his two primary passions were soccer and cars. Marc went on to continue playing soccer through middle school at Athena and then at Arcadia in High School as a defenseman and back up to the goalie. Having older sisters who regularly needed car repairs allowed Marc many opportunities to work closely with his Dad to learn how to help fix their cars. This led him to taking small engine shop classes in high school.
Marc played varsity soccer from 10 thru 12 grades at Arcadia. He even played internationally in his sophomore year. He and his team traveled to Europe for three weeks to play in tournaments. Marc’s team won the International Harlem Cup tournament. “Coach Balducci was one of the biggest influences on me in soccer,” Marc said. Another influencer in Marc’s life of soccer was his teammate Tim Brennan. “Tim was the starting goalie at Arcadia and he took me under his wing and really made me the goalkeeper that I am today by sharing his training and techniques.” The three years Marc played varsity soccer for Greece Arcadia they played in the sectionals. In his senior year they co-won the State Championship ending his high school career with his team by setting a Greece soccer record with 15 shutouts in one season. Marc reflects back to his games and how hard he would start playing when he knew his Dad was there watching, “I remember his high pitch whistle. It was unmistakable and when I heard it I really began to play my hardest,” he said.
Marc graduated from Arcadia in 1989 and began his career working in auto mechanics. He stayed active in playing soccer and even trained with the Rochester Rhinos and the Syracuse Salty Dogs. When Marc’s dad began his battle with skin cancer he stepped away from playing soccer competitively for the first time in his life. Sadly Marc lost his Dad to cancer. In 2009 Marc became the owner of his own auto mechanic service garage, Joey’s Place Auto Repair, on Portland Avenue in the City of Rochester. Marc purchased this business after the original owner Joey passed away. The name Joe carried a lot of meaning to Marc. It was his dad’s name and also his godson and his nephew’s name that both had very untimely deaths.“To honor all four of them I kept the name Joey’s Place,” he said.
Years later ‘Soccer Sam’ Fantauzzo started a new professional soccer team, The Rochester Lancers. By this time Marc was already in his 40s and he was certain he was too old to have the opportunity to play on a professional soccer team. Due to his love of soccer and passion for having a local professional team, he really wanted to be part of the Rochester Lancers. Marc contacted ‘Soccer Sam’ to try out as the team mascot Lancer Louie. With his talent for soccer and love of the sport, the coaching staff of the Lancers insisted that Marc try out for the team. He trained with the team and was brought on as a goalkeeper on the reserve team for a few years until he got that call. “I just got out of work and was bringing home my rotisserie chicken for dinner when I got the call to play in the game against Milwaukee. I had to pack and fly out within a few hours,” he said. This was Marc’s first professional game as a starting goalie and it was against one of the best teams in the league that year.
Marc continued playing with the Lancers and eventually became part of the coaching team. On January 31, 2020 Marc was inducted in the Lancer’s Hall of Fame. This induction was a dream come true for Marc, he never dreamed that as a young child playing soccer with his neighbors it would have culminated with this honor. A lifetime of perseverance, dedication and following his passion ultimately brought him to fulfilling his dream of playing professional soccer at an age most soccer players have already retired. His coach Doug Miller nicknamed Marc, “The American Dream.” “If you have a dream, go for it and follow it all the way through,” Marc said.
Currently Marc stays busy with his six-year-old twins Kacee and Thierry, named after his favorite athlete Thierry Henry. He runs his auto repair business, coaches youth soccer, and he also leads the local beach soccer tournaments. The Rochester Lancer Beach Soccer Team is co-ed and plays at Charlotte Beach. The tournament brings beach soccer teams in from all over the East Coast and will be held this year on July 11, 2020. As Marc winds down his professional soccer career he is really looking forward to “going back to being a fan and enjoying watching soccer games.”
For more information on local beach soccer visit https://www.soccerinthesand.com/
