Gates Chili Focused on Growth

Roster Outlook

Gates Chili enters the 2026 season following a 5-10 campaign and returns a majority of its offensive production. The Spartans graduated three seniors, including midfielder/faceoff specialist Michael Alley, defender Shawn Henderson, and midfielder Bennett Miley. Alley was the lone all-league honoree among the graduates, leaving a gap in midfield and faceoff experience.

Despite those departures, Gates Chili retains 67% of its goals and 71% of its assists from last season. The roster includes eight rising seniors, five juniors, and twelvesophomores, giving the team a youthful but promising balance of experience and developing talent.

Returning Standouts

Several returning players earned postseason recognition last year and will anchor the 2026 lineup.

Demar Williams, a 2027 goalie, posted 170 saves with a 45.8% save rate and earned All-League Honorable Mention Goalie (MC-d3), giving the Spartans stability in net. Gianni Salandy, a 2026 goalie/midfielder, contributed 4 goals and 2 assists while also recording 18 saves with a 60.0% save rate, earning All-League Honorable Mention LSM Midfield (MC-d3).

Attackman Phommachanh Callaway returns for his senior year after scoring 10 goals and 8 assists. Joshua Yakowitz scored 25 goals and added 2 assists last year as a sophomore.

Jayden Maryjanowski, a 2026 attackman committed to Lake Erie, scored 29 goals and added 21 assists last year earning All-League Second Team LSM Midfield (MC-d3) is injured, but Coach Pittman says, "he is still a leader on the team but will not be playing in any games this season."

Coaching Information

Gates Chili continues under Head Coaches Bill Lewis and Glenn Pittman, who enter their second season leading the program. They hold a 5-10 record at Gates Chili, matching their overall scholastic mark. Coach Pittman says," Coach Lewis and I look to build off the on/off field successes from last year. Our boys competed with a lot of heart each and every game of the season and look to increase our compete level throughout the program." With a year of experience behind them and a roster that returns a majority of its scoring, they guide a group aiming to take the next step in Class B.

Statistical Overview

Gates Chili scored 127 goals last season, averaging 8.5 per game, while allowing 213 goals at an average of 14.2. Three games were decided by five goals or fewer, including one one-goal win. With more than two-thirds of its scoring returning and multiple award-winning players back, the Spartans enter 2026 with a statistical base that suggests potential for improvement.

Games This Year

The 2026 schedule includes several MC3 league matchups. League games are set against Brockport (03/24), Churchville-Chili (04/11), Canandaigua (04/21), Brockport (04/23), and HFL (04/29).

Other contests include non-league meetings with East United-Eastridge, Brighton, Batavia, Greece Storm, Irondequoit, Rush-Henrietta, Schroeder, and Bloomfield-Honeoye.

Looking Ahead

With returning offensive leaders, experienced goalies, and a coaching staff entering its second season, Gates Chili approaches 2026 with cautious optimism. The combination of returning production and a youthful roster provides a foundation for growth as the Spartans look to strengthen their position in Class B.

Preseason stories are based on information from SportsFive.NET databases and coaches.

Stories are planned for each of the teams in Section V and will be released, a few at a time, between now and the start of the playing season. The stories will remain on the front page for about one week and then will be available in the NEWS archive. There will be links for all the published stories HERE and a link will also be available on each TEAM PAGE.