Leveled up: Harding Academy girls soccer 'three-peats' as champions after moving up to Class 4A

By Buck Ringgold | Photos by Abigail Weihe 

CONWAY - A higher classification, yet it was the same lofty results in the end for Harding Academy’s girls soccer squad.

Following back-to-back state championships in Class 3A, the Lady Wildcats were elevated to 4A for this season. But they continued their winning ways.

Harding Academy scored a goal in the early minutes of both halves and made that stand as the Lady Wildcats made it three straight state titles with a 2-0 win against Pulaski Robinson for the 4A title Friday morning at Estes Stadium.

It also capped a perfect 19-0 season for the Lady Wildcats.

“It’s very special,” HA coach Angie Harlow said. “We just really didn’t know what to expect in 4A; we knew we were looking forward to some good competition and I thought Joe T. Robinson was great competition, Brookland was great competition.

“(Pulaski Academy), who is in the 5A championship, we beat them this year. Going 19-0 is special in 4A; it’s been a really great year and to do it with this group has just been incredible.”

It took the Lady Wildcats just less than eight minutes to get things going. HA received a penalty kick opportunity, and Kloey Fullerton was assigned that chance.

The junior proved to be capable of the task at hand, sticking the ball in the back left corner to put Harding Academy up, 1-0.

“Honestly, we practice penalties every single day in practice, and I’ve missed mine every time,” Fullerton said. “But I was pretty confident. … I wasn’t too nervous, but I was like, ‘I can make this.’ We’ve practiced this and coach really prepared us.”

Harding Academy continued its relentless barrage of shot attempts the remainder of the first half, but was unable to add to its advantage. Robinson (16-5) did have one good scoring chance in the final minutes before halftime, but a free kick went right to Lady Wildcat goalkeeper Krimson Fager.

The Lady Wildcats finally were able to tack on another goal just 3:34 into the second half, as senior Anna Snow received a pass from Fullerton and knocked it through for the important two-goal margin.

Vote now: Who should be SBLive's Arkansas high school athlete of the week?

“I was very relieved about that,” Snow said. “I was just trying to stay wide, and throughout the year, our goal was to get it wide and then cross it.

“That’s really what I was just focusing on and so when that pass was made, I was just ready to (receive) the ball and find a pocket to put it through.”

Harding Academy’s defense did the rest, as the Lady Wildcats were able to notch the shutout.

“I’m really proud of the defense, they always give it their all, especially in a game like this where we know coming into it that it’s going to be really physical and really challenging, and I’m just really proud of the way they show up and (go after) every ball and never give up,” Snow said.

Following the match, Snow was awarded the Most Valuable Player trophy. Harlow had praise for Snow, as well as senior teammate Calle Citty, who was the MVP in the Lady Wildcats’ state title win last season.

“(Snow) and Calle (Citty) both have just been amazing leaders, and Anna’s a two-time captain voted by her peers. … Sometimes I say she’s kind of an assistant coach because I bounce a lot of stuff off of her, and she’s a wonderful young woman,” Harlow said.

“I think she can play at the next level, but she has just chosen to (focus) on her studies. She’s a spiritual leader on our team, she’s an academic leader, she’s athletic; she’s just an amazing young woman and Calle Citty is the same way; both were voted captains and they’re our two seniors.”

Check It Out: SBLive Arkansas Top 25 girls soccer rankings (May 8)

Snow also believed the Lady Wildcats weren’t going to skip a beat after moving up a classification over the offseason.

“It feels amazing, it’s still pretty unreal, but moving up (to 4A), we were pretty confident,” she said. “Nothing really changed in our game, we just got closer and we kept going as players and as teammates.”

Class 3A Girls Soccer State Championship

Episcopal Collegiate 3, Central Arkansas Christian 0

Samantha De Luca definitely capped her career as a Lady Wildcat on a high note.

The senior standout, who scored 42 goals a season ago, accounted for a hat trick in Friday afternoon’s 3A championship game as Episcopal - which lost to Harding Academy in last season’s 3A title match - finally took its own crown.

De Luca, who will play at Saint Louis University next season, remarked after the game her intent going in wasn’t to get a hat trick. She even was OK not finding the net, as long as her team found a way to get the job done.

“No, I never think that,” De Luca said. “I want to score, but as long as we win, I don’t care.”

She had her first goal in the game’s 15th minute and then made it 2-0 with a goal less than nine minutes to go before halftime. De Luca finished off the hat trick with a goal barely three minutes into the second half as Episcopal (17-1) took care of business.

In Episcopal's four playoff wins, De Luca scored a total of 11 goals.

Of the three goals she tallied Friday, De Luca remarked her second goal was her personal favorite.

“I really liked my second goal,” she said. “Heidi Sanders went down the line, crossed a beautiful cross and it was just a simple tap-in for me. I couldn’t ask for something easier.”

Sanders, a freshman, also had an assist on one of De Luca’s other goals.

“She’s going to do great things,” De Luca said. “She’s only a freshman. … I can’t wait to see what she does if she does play further.”

Though De Luca played her final game at Episcopal, she believes the team can get right back to playing for another championship.

“I think we left a legacy for sure,” she said. “Our team’s amazing, we have a great team and everyone does their part. It’s going to be interesting to see if another team comes up and does it, so I’m excited to see it.”