BE Boys and Girls soccer: Simply the best in Class AA!
Simply the best.
The Bishop England boys’ soccer team claimed two titles with one performance Friday night at Irmo High School. The Bishops won the Class AA state crown with a 4-1 victory over Indian Land. The other title is the state’s best all-time program if state titles are the gauge.
The Bishops now have 17 state crowns, which is one better than Irmo’s 16-title collection.
“We are the king of the hill now with 17 state championships so congratulations to the kids,” Bishop England coach Ed Khouri said, “This was our first time playing here at Irmo. We were tied with them but now the record is ours. I think it was in the stars for us to win.”
The first half was scoreless and the Bishops took a 1-0 lead in the 43rd minute when Sam Friedrich scored off a corner kick served up by Alex Maillouox.
Seventeen minutes later, the Bishops scored when Joel Bunting set up Curtis Johnson to push the lead to 2-0.
Bunting assisted on the Bishops’ third goal of the night off the foot of Buist Kerrison. Jacob Schirmer tallied the Bishops’ final goal of the season.
The Bishops posted a 23-2 record in their final season at the Class AA level. The victory in the title game gives the Bishops a 10-game winning streak headed into the 2017 season. One of the victories in the streak came over Wando, which was ranked No. 1 among teams that play soccer in the spring.
It was the Bishops’ first state title since 2013 when the Bishops beat Indian Land. Saturday’s loss was Indians Land’s fifth straight setback in the AA championship.
Meanwhile, the Bishop England girls’ team completed one of the most dominating playoff runs in state history with a 5-1 victory over Christ Church.
The Bishops outscored playoff foes 35-1, and the only close encounter was a 2-0 victory over three-time defending state champ Academic Magnet in the Lower State championship.
Friday night’s victory ended a six-year drought for the Bishops, who claimed their 10th state championship overall.
Sophomore Kessy Bradshaw led the Bishops with a hat trick. The Bishops took control early, scoring in the second minute of the match as Bradshaw scored. Cored in the fourth minute to make the game turn into a lopsided affair.
The Bishops finished with an 18-8 record, but many of the losses came against Class AAA and AAAA foes, in state and out of state.
The playoff streak came on the heels of a late regular-season slump, having lost three consecutive games — to Academic Magnet, Wando and Cardinal Newman. Coach Dave Snyder won his eighth state title and watched his team dominate during the playoffs, outscoring opponents, 35-1.
Christ Church ended the season with a 17-7 record.
Christ Church cut the lead to 2-1, but Bradshaw scored again to push the lead to two goals. Alexander Wain scored the other goal for the Bishops.