Youth/High School Soccer
Second half comeback leads Penn FC Youth to national title
Viktorya Luchenbach scored twice in a three minute span to lead Penn FC Youth to an incredible come-from-behind win in the U.S. Youth Soccer U-18/U-19 girls national championship on Sunday morning at ESPN Wide World of Sports.
Looking to bring home a second national championship to their club in the last game with the Penn FC badge on their uniforms (the club will now be known as PA Classics Harrisburg), the Central PA team started out on the front foot and nearly opened the scoring early with a shot from Kathryn Reynolds off a corner from Amber Liu that clanged off the crossbar in the 2nd minute.
Despite the early chance, it was the Michigan Rangers who would capitalize on their first clear opportunity when Tessa Ponstein converted a wide open chance in front of goal in the 18th minute. While at first it appeared that Ponstein was offside, the replay showed she was played on by a defender on the left flank. Ponstein would double the lead just three minutes later and the Rangers would take that lead into halftime.
Coming out of the break in scorching hot temperatures, it would take until the 68th minute for the girls in blue to find a way back into the game. It came off the foot of Reynolds and the head of Haley Bull – one of two starters in the game who had older sisters on the Penn FC national championship team in 2021 (Janae Swartz is the other). Bull’s header at the far post gave her team life and set up for a dramatic three-minute span that would ultimately capture the trophy.
Luchenbach struck first when the state champion track runner got to a mishit ball between two defenders and took it to goal in the 80th minute and again from a similar spot where Ponstein scored the game’s second goal to turn a one-goal deficit into a 3-2 lead in about the time of a normal commercial break. It was an incredible turn around for a team known for not giving up against a Michigan Rangers squad that returned 11 players from a national championship team a year ago.
Speaking post-game on a broadcast on ESPN+, Luchenbach noted that the fight to comeback is one of the team’s strongest characteristics. The 2007 girls – coached by Dickinson women’s assistant Adam Freeman – won their second Eastern Regional championship en route to lifting the Evelyn Gill/Kathy Zolad Cup at nationals.
“No matter what happens, no matter if we’re down, we always continue to fight back,” Luchenbach said. “We never gave up on each other, and clearly we proved that here today.”
Penn FC’s win marks the first U.S. Youth Soccer NCS national championship for an Eastern Pennsylvania team since Philadelphia SC Coppa Rage won the U-17 crown in 2022. Lower Merion 007s won the National Presidents Cup this year and Ballyhoo FC won it in 2023.
Penn FC Youth/PA Classics Harrisburg 2007 F Black: Josephine Devlin, Regan Schroder, Ella Moore, Addison Stover, Madi Merrell, Emily Erb, Viktorya Luckenbach, Kathryn Reynolds, Janae Swartz, Cameron Ofak, Haley Bull, Eliza Artell, Cassidey Snyder, Amber Liu, Mackenzie Daldo, Kali O’Connell, Chelsea Coburn and Joselyn Swartz. The team is coached by Adam Freeman and assistant Jay Stover.
