St. Luke's Girls Varsity Soccer Wins FAA League Title

The St. Luke’s Girls Varsity Soccer team was crowned FAA League Champions on Thursday, November 1 after battling to a 2-2 tie with Greenwich Academy.

The Storm went into the matchup knowing a win or a tie would secure the title and the #1 seed for the FAA tournament and goals from Lily Tencic ‘20 and Ali Gall ‘22 were enough to thwart the Gators.

With so much at stake for both teams, it was an intense game from start to finish. St. Luke’s struck first in the 13th minute of the game when Tencic finished off a fine team goal.

Greenwich responded on the half-hour mark when a free-kick from Tessa Brooks found its way to the back of the net.

The Storm regrouped at halftime and came out strong in the second period. After another good move down the right-hand side of the field, Caroline Lau ‘22 found Gall wide open inside the penalty area. The freshman made no mistake with a cool finish to give St. Luke’s a 2-1 lead six minutes into the second period.

St. Luke’s had a wonderful opportunity to extend its lead after 56 minutes but Senior Hannah Mathew’s effort went agonizingly wide.

The Gators hit back for the second time in the match with 20 minutes to play when Brooks scored directly from a corner kick but the Storm stood firm to win its third FAA title in four years.

Head Coach Dan Clarke was thrilled for his team: “The consistency we have shown over the course of the season has been rewarded. This was always going to be a tough game and Greenwich Academy made things very difficult for us. We scored two good goals and did just enough to secure the title. The girls should be very proud of their efforts.”

The team is the number one seed for the FAA tournament and won its quarterfinal matchup on Monday, November 5 2-0 against The King School. Both goals from Julia Lombardo '21, either side of halftime, were enough to advance to Wednesday's semifinal against Greens Farms Academy. With a possible final on Friday, November 7 Clarke remained cautious about his team’s chances, “We have to take it one game at a time and not look too far ahead. Anything can happen in the playoffs so we have to stay focused.”

St. Luke's is a secular private school in New Canaan, CT for grades 5-12. St. Luke's mission is an exceptional education that inspires a deep love of learning, a strong moral compass, the commitment to serve, and the confidence to lead. St. Luke's Center for Leadership advances our mission by helping students develop exceptional leadership ability. Visit today.