Wednesday, November 4, 2009

With the man who led the Rhinos to championships in four consecutive years back in charge, the Rhinos are hoping Pat Ercoli the General Manager, can rekindle the magic of Pat Ercoli the head coach, who won three league championships and the US Open Cup from 1998-2001.

Rochester’s spectacular run as powerhouse began in 1998 when they posted a 24-4 season that still ranks as one of the league’s best performances. They went on to win their first league championship after finishing as runners-up in 1996.

A year later, the Rhinos’ bid to repeat came up a bit short in the Final, but Rochester had already made national headlines, capturing the US Open Cup championship with four straight victories over Major League Soccer opposition. They remain the only club to win the title in the MLS era.

A third consecutive trip to the USL-1 Final produced a second league championship in 2000, topping the Minnesota Thunder in the third straight meeting between the two in the Final.

Rochester finally got its repeat a year later when they defeated conference rival Hershey in the championship match.