Long Island semipro squad making plenty of sacrifices to fulfill soccer dreams

A recent evening physical therapy class ran late for Stony Brook student Leo Pinto, who, unlike his peers, had to make a mad dash about 30 miles to Massapequa for practice with the American Soccer Club of the NPSL.It comes with the territory of being a semipro athlete.Pinto, like his teammates, is gladly at the beck and call of work and play — plus traveling to tristate away games on weekends.“You lose sleep, but you could tell your family, your friends that, ‘Hey, I’m doing it.’ I’m playing in this professional environment,” the 24-year-old told The Post.Pinto just experienced a prime example of the toll playing semipro has not just on himself, but also on his girlfriend and her family. He owes them a nice steak dinner after they moved the couple into a new apartment while he was on the road for a game, as they’re just as supportive of Pinto living out his deep aspirations. “They come to my games.

They know how much she sacrificed, how much I sacrificed to have this life,” the utility midfielder said.“As a kid, you have that dream of playing professionally.

… I just want to embrace that for as long as I can.”He’s one of many on the Fighting Tomcats living out their dreams to have one more serious shot at the game they deeply love in between working their 9-to-5 jobs.Teammates are happy to turn eight-hour days into 16-hour affairs with late practice three nights a week.“Usually, when I step on that field, I usually just forget [about the stresses of life],” center midfielder Jose Mejia said.The roadway construction worker and dad of a newborn daughter, Luna, is usually wiped out from a day of physical labor by the time practice starts.

Still, the extracurricular is his labor of love.“I don’t look at it in a way where, ‘Oh, it’s tough for me,’ ” said the 25-year-old Mejia, who exclusively works, raises his daughter and plays soccer this time of year.“I usually just enjoy and have fun on the field and give my best....