By DAVE O’SULLIVAN
Staff Writer
On X @GDsullysays
sullyglorydays@gmail.com
It’s really hard to win a New Jersey state soccer championship, particularly at the Group 3 level. Which is why what Shawnee High did this past fall is so impressive. Both the boys and the girls teams won state championships, and the girls finished a perfect 25-0.
It appears Medford is becoming the soccer capital of South Jersey.
“Both us and the girls team have been knocking on the door the last couple of years. Both of us have lost in the Coaches Cup championship, the girls lost in the state championship last year and we both lost in the sectional championship two years ago,” said Shawnee boys coach Ryan Franks, himself a former Renegade. “We’ve been right at the precipice of being able to bring home a state title in both programs, but it’s not easy to do. A lot of things have to break right, you need everybody to stay healthy. And I think the girls would echo that sentiment.”
“We went to the state final last year and lost in penalty kicks. We were really disappointed about that, but we brought back nine of our 11 starters from that team, so we had hopes for a special year,” said Shawnee girls coach Drew Wagner. “As we went along, I think this team expected to win it all as opposed to last year when they were just glad to be there. They were really hungry this year and they came in with a great attitude and a great work ethic. I always say what separated this team from other good teams is a great work ethic and accountability. They came to training every day with the same level of intensity, and they played every game with the same level of intensity. There were no letdowns — that’s what made this team so special.
“It was really awesome,” he continued, “it just worked out that both teams were really strong this year and able to get it done. We actually played each game the day before them, so we would win and then they would win. A lot of the boys came to support the girls and the girls would then go support the boys team.”
Both teams have had their share of heartache the last couple of years, and perhaps that is what built their resolve to get it done in 2024. Three years ago, the boys had just two losses, but one of them was to Kingsway in the sectional quarterfinals. Two years ago, a gut-wrenching PK loss to Cherry Hill West in the South Jersey Group 3 championship game. Last year, another loss in the sectional final, this time to Clearview.
But this past fall, Franks’ boys put it all together, winning 21 games, including their final 10 games — a span in which they allowed just six goals. They won four straight games to win the Coaches Cup, then ripped off six straight state tournament wins to capture the state championship.
The girls had a similar trajectory. Three years ago, 14 wins and a loss in the sectional quarterfinals. Two years ago, 17 wins and a shootout loss to Cherry Hill West in the sectional title game. Last season, 19 wins and a shootout loss against Chatham in the state championship game. The shootout went six rounds before Chatham prevailed.
This past fall, though, the Renegades put up perhaps the most dominant girls soccer season in South Jersey history, going 25-0 and scoring 83 goals while yielding just seven the entire season.
“I believe success breeds success. We have a handful of girls coming back and we have some young girls who are ready to step in. They’ve been around (championship soccer) and that will give them a huge edge. I expect them to come in with the same level of intensity next year,” said Wagner, who won the state title for the first time in his 22-year career. “It’s a combination of great feeder systems and great kids. We have exceptional kids who have great attitudes and work hard. We’ve had great girls soccer teams in the past, but we’d have a letdown game here or there. This group was so consistent and played with such intensity. It was unbelievable the year we had. We had 17 shutouts last year, a school record, and then we top that with 19 this year. It was remarkable.”
Franks and Wagner both agreed that the key to Shawnee’s success at the high school level is built on a foundation of great youth programs.
“I think in a lot of ways our program’s success is an extension of our soccer culture here in town. Our kids are brought up in it, and we’re lucky as (high school) coaches to be at the end of a lot of other people’s hard work. There’s been a rich soccer history in our town and here at Shawnee,” Franks said. “I coach my son, who is 8 years old, and I looked around the field one night this past fall and one of my old captains is coaching a team over on the next field. And on the next field over from that, one of our other guys a year younger than him is coaching a team. There’s a guy from the 1988 state championship team. These guys don’t have kids in the program, but they are there giving back to a program they were a part of and grew up in. I was lucky enough to be part of it growing up in this community, and even on this year’s team we had guys whose dads played for Shawnee. It’s a special soccer community to be a part of. It’s like they say, ‘many hands make light work.’”
Added Wagner, “it’s a credit to our community, especially the feeder system in Medford and the Real Jersey Football Club. That’s where it all starts. This is such a great community with great kids who work hard and are ambitious.”
For a while, a lot of the best players were choosing to play high level club soccer rather than for their high school teams, but the pendulum seems to be swinging back a little bit as players are eager for the high school experience.
“A good feeder program is obviously what starts it, and then just having great kids who are willing to work and buy in,” Wagner said. “Both of my boys played for the Philadelphia Union Academy, so they didn’t get to play high school soccer, and it’s a completely different animal in that there’s so much pride playing for your school, playing with the kids you grew up with, your best friends since you were little. Our bus pulled out going to the state championship game and we had a police escort out of town. We had the parents lined up along the school driveway holding up signs. It’s such a special environment, and the girls loved it. They really took pride in doing it for our school and being the first team to ever win a state championship at our school.”
“It was really fun to be able to look at not just our success, but (the girls team’s) success,” Franks said. “I need somebody who is a better historian than I to figure it out, but I can’t imagine (both teams winning) has happened too many times in New Jersey history. I don’t think either (myself or coach Wagner) could be more proud to represent Shawnee.”
Through the years, the Shawnee boys have won eight state championships, while the girls notched their first this past fall. It may not be the last for either program if things keep trending upward the way they have the last three years.
“I’ve had great teams and great kids over the years but this specific group was such a great group,” Wagner said. “One of the biggest compliments I get is in the hallways at school, when I run into teachers and they congratulate me. Every one of them says, ‘I have several of your players in class and this is just such a nice group of girls.’ To have this group win it and be the first team in school history is one of the best things to ever happen to me. I couldn’t wish this on a better group.”
