Sophia Dennis brace, clean sheet earns Faith Christian Academy girls first PIAA state title

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Sophia Dennis had a goal from distance in each half and Kendal Robison and company recorded yet another clean sheet to lead Faith Christian Academy to their first ever PIAA state title with a 2-0 win over Bishop Guilfoyle on Saturday night at Northeastern High School in Manchester.

The Lions (17-4-2) completed an impressive run through the postseason with six straight clean sheets and recorded their 10th straight shutout in all competitions.

“They say defense wins championships and it came true tonight,” head coach Ben Sauers said. “Just rock solid defense.”

Faith Christian’s postseason run started with a scoreless draw with Delco Christian that saw the Lions claw their way back from a 3-1 deficit in penalty kicks to advance to the Class A District 1 final, where they defeated two-time defending state champ Dock Mennonite 1-0.

“We were one shot away from losing the entire thing,” Sauers said. “And the girls under that kind of pressure, they really stepped up and I think that was a turning point for our goalie, a turning point for our girls and from there they just put their foot on the gas.”

While the defense was settling in against a talented Bishop Guilfoyle attack after a couple early salvos, Sophia Dennis was quick to pull the trigger when given space in the attack and shots from distance with her right foot in the first half and her left foot in the second half were the difference on the Bobcat Stadium scoreboard.

“This team is a combination of everything we’ve learned, everything we’ve worked for,” Dennis said. “We were all on the same page. We came out here tonight with one goal in mind and that’s what we did, that’s what we accomplished.”

Saturday’s victory extended the Lions’ unbeaten streak to 14 after a slow start to the campaign that included three straight losses and four losses in their first 9 games. The early non-conference slate – Villa Joseph Marie, Souderton and Pope John Paul II to open the season – was challenging on purpose.

“We were playing 4A teams, top 3A teams, top 2A teams so we used that as our proving ground,” Sauers said. “We knew we wanted to beat Dock at the end of the season so that was all part of preparing us for it.”

The PIAA title for the girls comes five years after the boys team won their first and only PIAA state title in a 5-1 win over Greensburg Central Catholic at Hersheypark Stadium. The boys were also in the state final in 2021 but came up short in a 1-0 loss in overtime to Winchester Thurston.

“It’s a team effort, we all just worked hard on and off the field,” Robison said. “We put God first and we put it in his hands and played our best for his glory.”