It is November 17, 2024, and Morgan girls’ soccer is down 4-3 on penalties in the State Championship. Sadie Passantte, then a junior, is watching her teammate take her penalty. She goes to shoot,  but it hits the post, sealing the championship for Coginchaug. Passante is in disbelief. 

Although many would crumble under this hurdle, Passante is different. She always has been. And after this loss, Passante has come out even more determined to show her hard work, as she has done her entire life. 

Ever since she was little, Sadie Passante has had a love for soccer. At the start, she played through the town of Clinton, playing Park & Rec and travel. There, she remembers having fun with her friends and began to see her potential. “I remember that park & rec and travel were where I began to really love the sport. This was a time when I just had a ton of fun and enjoyed playing with and against my friends.”

She shared that travel would be a different type of competition. “For travel, it was my first time playing against different towns and tough competition, and it was a big learning experience for me,” Passante said. In 3rd grade, after discovering that one of her mother’s coworkers was part of a premier soccer club, Connecticut Rush Select Soccer, Passante knew she wanted to join. 

While playing for Rush, she would build on her skills and reach one of the highest levels in the club, which was called Select. After joining, Passante continued at the club ever since. “I stayed because Rush has been so loyal to me and my family, and it is important for me to show loyalty back. Also, I love the team I play on and have become super close with all the girls, so I would never want to leave them,” Passante shared.

Throughout her entire life, Passante shared that her parents and club coaches over the years have really impacted her and brought her to the position she is in today.

When Passante entered high school, she joined the Morgan girls’ soccer team, earning a starting spot as a freshman. Today, she is thought of as one of the best players on the soccer team, as she committed to a D1 school, Central Connecticut State University.

After an unlucky loss last season in the state finals against Coginchaug on penalties, Passante plans on coming back stronger and trying to get the state championship. “Our goal at the end of the season is to win the state championship this time, and come back stronger, but we’re trying to also focus on one game at a time and win Shoreline’s first and get a winning record first.” 

With all this pressure on her back, she manages to keep her cool with support from her teammates. “Yeah, I mean, sometimes I feel pressured to like, score or do something like that, but a lot of times, my teammates help with that pressure and just support me,” Passante explained.

Passante’s co-captain, Riley Febbroriello, shared what Passante’s plan is this season as well. “I know that she definitely deserves to get player of the conference, and that’s a really big goal for her, but also just to improve, and, like, get ready to play in college, and kind of just make an impact on the team,” Febbroriello shared.

Her father, Chris Passante, one of the assistant and JV coaches of Morgan girls’ soccer, shared what she has done to improve her game over the years. “Sadie is a hard worker and is passionate about soccer. I see all her hard work, such as practices in the rain and in the dark when no one else is around, and I pull into the driveway, and I see her working in the front yard by herself,” said coach Passante. 

Even with all her success, Passante needs help sometimes, “We know each other very well, and we’re very good at compromising, so, for example, if she thinks we should do one thing, and I think we should do something else, we kind of meet in the middle, and there’s a lot of communication,” shared Febbroriello. 

Febbroriello also shared that if one person was struggling one day, the other had to step up. “Also, if there’s a day that she can’t do something, or, like, when she was hurt, I kind of had to take the lead, and I would help out more on the field in that practice, and she would help out more outside of school with all the texting and stuff, like planning and all that.” Febbroriello had to lead the team when Passante faced a big setback at the start of the season after Passante missed 5 games due to having 3 bone bruises on her left foot. 

“My injury at the beginning of the season was one of my biggest setbacks because I missed the first 5 games, and it affected my mental health a bit, because this is my senior year, and I obviously want to play,” Passante shared. “But this injury just made me appreciate the season much more and come back stronger because I wanted to play so bad.”

Sadie Passante is an athlete who has disciplined herself and is dedicated to the sport of soccer, as coaches, friends, and family have all helped her throughout her athletic career.

For Passante, it is all about improving, and it always will be. “Sadie is a student of the game,” coach Passante shared. “Watching videos of herself and opponents. All of that is stuff that nobody else sees.” 

He believes that all the work that she puts in really pays off in-game.