Catholic schools get their kicks as soccer champs

By Ron Brocato, Sports
Clarion Herald

You’ve seen them in nearly every green space in the metro area – soccer fields.

They proliferate in LaSalle and Lafreniere parks in Jefferson Parish; in fields alongside of Marconi Drive on the fringe of City Park, and in playgrounds on the West Bank, St. Bernard and St. Tammany parishes.

These plots of greenery have nurtured the finest high school soccer teams in Louisiana, primarily those that are part of the Archdiocese of New Orleans.

These Catholic schools have been the alpha forces in this sport throughout Louisiana.

The numbers speak for themselves:

Jesuit has won 13 Division I championships, and St. Paul’s has won 11.

Since 2007, St. Scholastica has captured seven Division I girls’ soccer titles and one in Division II.

Shall we move on?

The Academy of the Sacred Heart has been a soccer force with six state championships since the millennium began nearly a quarter-century ago. And gold-lettered trophies have been added to the  showcases of these hard-core ladies from Dominican (five), Mount Carmel (four), Archbishop Hannan and Pope John Paul II (one each).

As the winter sports seasons prepare to yield to the spring sports, local Catholic schools continue to enjoy successful campaigns.

No, they’re not dominating every sport. But they are the best on the soccer fields.

Jesuit, the Division I No. 1 seed, proved so by beating No. 2 seed Catholic of Baton Rouge, 1-0, at Hammond’s Strawberry Stadium on Feb. 24. And, the Blue Jays’ first title since 2018 marked the third by a local Catholic school in two days.

In recent years, St. Paul’s had been the thorn in Jesuit’s side. From 2019-23, the Wolves had ruled the pitch.

St. Scholastica won its eighth Division I girls’ crown, breaking a four-year drought after last claiming back-to-back state kick ball wins in 2018 and 2019. The Doves did it at the expense of No. 11 Byrd High, also on Feb. 24.

And Holy Cross, whose sports fortunes have soared since the beginning of the school year, tallied a 2-1 victory over No. 3 seed Ben Franklin to take home the Division II state championship.

Since the Tigers won four consecutive Division II titles from 2018-21, there had been discussion and the prospect of the school dropping down in class because of shrinking attendance.

But a change in administration gave the city’s second-oldest Catholic boys’ school a new outlook and direction. As a result, the school’s athletic programs are enjoying a good measure of success.

The football team posted a 9-3 record, its first winning season since 2018 and its best record since 2012, when the Tigers went 10-3 as a Class 4A school.

Since the fall, Holy Cross has brought home state championship honors in cross country and swimming in Division II and was the state runner-up in wrestling.